Beyond - Legends In the Shadow of Night - short story, OCs, FAR future - updated 2/28

Title: In the Shadow of Night
Author: VaderLVR64
Characters: OCs
Genre: short story
Timeframe: About two thousand years ABY
Summary: In the far future, the Jedi face a challenge that may well end the Order.
Notes: I?ve gotten several chapter written already and the story is completely outlined, so there should not be much of a delay in posting chapters. If it goes exactly according to the outline, it should be ten chapters long. Also, my thanks to Gina for letting me bounce ideas off of her until it hurts!


In the Shadow of Night



?Hope is like the sun, which, as we journey toward it, casts the shadow of our burden behind us.?
- Samuel Smiles


~~~~~~~~~~

The Grand Jedi Master stared at the data pad, her breath catching in an unusual betrayal of her feelings. ?These results?they?re?correct??? No one in the chamber could mistake the hope in her voice that the results were incorrect, or the resignation to the horrible truth of them that laced her words.

The young Jedi gave only one short, emphatic nod of his head. ?I?m afraid so, Grand Master? he answered quietly. ?We?ve run the projections a dozen times.?

There was a murmur of consternation among the Masters, while Grand Master Ryv merely closed her eyes and hung her head. Finally, she looked up and squared her shoulders.

?Then run them two dozen times,? the Grand Master said, tossing the data pad on her desk as if it had burned her. ?I can?t believe?? Taking a deep sigh, she rubbed at the bridge of her nose. ?I?m sorry, Knight Kordoss,? she murmured. ?I?m just tired.? She flashed him an apologetic smile, and his dark eyes met hers, remaining solemn.

?It is I who am sorry, Grand Master Ryv,? he said, giving her a short bow. He glanced around at the rest of the Council and withdrew.

Master Andro, a Koran Jedi whose unorthodox ways had almost kept him from the Council, looked around at the rest of his fellow Council members. ?We?ve been expecting this,? he remarked.

?We anticipated the possibility,? a slim Twi?Lek fem acknowledged grimly. ?Still?to see it written out so plainly.?

There rose from the small group a buzzing sound of unease. The Grand Master studied each of them, silently assessing their different gifts ? their strengths and weaknesses. All of them were immensely talented Jedi in their own ways. However, all of their gifts meant nothing in the face of the current crisis.

The most talented Jedi in the Order could not mend this wound.

?Perhaps if we put stop-gap measures into place,? suggested their newest member quietly. She was only thirty years old, brash and eager, but with a formidable connection to the Force that was the envy of many.

Master Ryv gave her a slight smile. ?We?ve tried such measures, Master Dio Prine,? she admitted. ?This is the reason behind much of the change in policy during the last century.?

?But we?ve taken a passive approach up till now,? the young woman replied. ?Maybe if we were more?aggressive??

Master Ryv looked around at the faces surrounding her. Their expressions revealed her own uneasiness with such policies, as well as the doubts she harbored about their usefulness. Such manipulations would not change the will of the Force.

Once more, she looked at the data pad. The numbers were all there for her to see, stark and plain?a sentence of death.

There was a long moment of silence and Master Dio Prine began pacing. ?There might be hope,? she insisted and Master Ryv envied the woman her youth and optimism. How long had it been since she had felt hope? The Force was merciful, she mused, but it gave nothing freely.

Had they reached the end of their own hopes? The end of the Force itself?

?Master Dio Prine,? another member chided. ?Surely you must believe that we?ve explored every possibility ? no matter how remote? That's we've considered every possible remedy, no matter how extreme??

The young woman stopped her pacing and met the elderly Zabrak?s eyes. ?No?I don?t think we have,? she replied wi

 

This is really interesting. I look forward to more...

Shrugging, Daylana nodded. ?Perhaps you?re right,? she admitted. ?But I?ve studied the ancient histories since I was a youngling, Master.? The two women shared a smile at fond memories. ?You know I?ve always suspected that something of the Skywalker line must remain.? Daylana leaned on the table, her expression earnest. ?And if it does, I think Tatooine is the most likely location.?

How far into the future is this?

?There will be a few in the next five years, perhaps one or two a year at the most,? Master Ryv said. ?And some of those might not even come to our attention.? She sighed and shook her head. ?But after five years, if the current trend continues, there will be no more Force sensitives born?to any species?ever again. Even among ourselves, our children are born blind and deaf to the Force.? She swallowed hard. ?The Jedi Order will become extinct.?

That's an unusual ?challenge? to face. Is there some kind of genetic dysfunction or is a person somehow responsible for this?

This is so fascinating! Like I'm sure I've said before, I love everything you write!

 

MarasFire Thank you! I added it to the first post, but the story takes place about 2,000 years after the Battle of Yavin. Give or take a decade.

Mira_JadeThank you!

And a big hug to Gina for reading over the first chapters and my notes and giving me her invaluable advice.

 

Very interesting beginning. I hate to think that the Skywalker line did die out. I guess we'll see!

 

Whoa. Excellent beginning and I love the premise - pretty much the only thing the Jedi have never had to deal with is the drying-up of the source of their power (or whatever explanation you have planned . . .) Anyway, I'm definitely on board for this. It's nice to see stories so completely remote from the SW we know and love

If you're having a PM list, may I be on it? Ta very much

 

A very intriguing premise. It reminds me a lot of Children of Men.

 

Such an intriguing start, K! Looking forward to more updates!

 

ginchy We'll see indeed!

JediNemesis It was an odd plot bunny that came to me while I was watching Children of Men (see another response below!).

karebear214 It's a lot like that because that is what inspired this bunny! I was going to mention that in this post, but you beat me to it! The working file is even called Children of Men.

Gina Thank you! And thank you for letting me constantly bounce ideas off of you. I'll send some aspiring your way!

---

[b]Chapter 2[/b]


The journey to Tatooine was swift and trouble free. Though recently there had been an increase in the activities of pirates and smugglers in the Mid-Rim, of which Tatooine was a part, Daylana?s small ship had been too insignificant to get much notice. Besides, with the Force as her ally, she had felt relatively confident of arriving at her destination in safety.

She landed in Espa, settling her ship down on the sands with a slight smile of contentment at being home. It was almost possible to forget the desperation that had brought her here. Briefly, she closed her eyes and asked the Force for the strength to see her mission through, acceptance of what she would find, and the tenacity to look beyond the obvious.

When she opened her eyes, she felt refreshed and strengthened.

It was time to begin her mission, and even if failure waited for her, at least she would know she had done everything possible to prevent the bleak future that awaited the Order. Perhaps extinction [i]was[/i] their fate, but she would not accept that without exploring every spacelane that the Force revealed.

Grabbing her bag, she descended the small ramp and blinked up at the familiar suns, Twin I and Twin II. She had seen those suns every day of her life until the age of seven, when she had gone to live in the Jedi Temple Ship. As the Order grew smaller, it was easier ? and [i]safer[/i] ? to keep the heart of the Order on a ship.

The attacks of the past against the Order had left behind an indelible impression, and no Jedi took their safety for granted any longer. It was best to remain alert and aware, wary of danger that might approach in the guise of a friendly face. History had taught them to be cautious, and it was a lesson that was handed down right along with the skills of meditation and performing katas.

Daylana knew from her studies that it had not always been so; there had been a time, in a past so long ago that the history of it was mostly lost, when the Order had been arrogant and supreme, assured of their place in the galaxy.

It had been then that the Sacred One had come to them, and handed down to the Jedi a terrible and devastating lesson in humility. When his instruction had been complete, the Order had been virtually destroyed, with only a few scattered seeds of hope that remained from which the Jedi were destined to rise once again.

When the Order had been recreated, a new mantle of humility had been placed over it, and it had been led once more by the line of the Sacred One. The specific histories had been lost over time, of course, but enough tantalizing bits of information remained to convince Daylana that the sacred line had been the salvation of the Order once before, perhaps it would prove to be so once again.

The Sacred One had come from Tatooine, the birthplace of the Force according to some Jedi scholars. So it was here that her search would begin.


~~~~~~


Daylana secured a small set of rooms in the heart of the city. Espa, a bustling port city, was a logical place to begin her research. There were always rumors in such a place, boasts of having descended from that sacred line that had made Tatooine famous.

The vast majority of such claims would be ridiculous of course, and it would be up to her to determine which ones should be given more attention and which she could safely dismiss. No possibility could be left unexplored, however, no matter how remote. She could discard information only after she [i]knew[/i] it would le

 

I love the combination of history and mystery here! And Daylana is very interesting. I wonder what the Force has in store for her? Maybe she'll find her own Skywalker out in the sands.

May we all be so lucky, right??

Wonderful story, I'm intrigued!

 

It had been then that the Sacred One had come to them, and handed down to the Jedi a terrible and devastating lesson in humility. When his instruction had been complete, the Order had been virtually destroyed, with only a few scattered seeds of hope that remained from which the Jedi were destined to rise once again.

Great chapter - it was these lines that stood out for me, though. The idea of a future Jedi Order revering Luke Skywalker is practically fanon - but Anakin? I'd genuinely never thought of that possibility. But the way you phrase it makes so much sense - his arrival was prophesied, after all, and so it could be argued that the near-destruction of the Order was also the will of the Force. I love the idea that Vader was sent as a "lesson in humility". Really gives the idea of a wider context for the Saga, and the religious overtones work really well.

Okay . . . enough rambling. I love the way you're handling this. Keep up!

 

...a devastating and terrible lesson in humility... Wow. I don't think I've ever heard it phrased so eloquently. Really. The Old Jedi Order were sticks who would not bend in the winds of change, so they broke. You captured it beautifully.

And we all know that the Skywalkers are the Children of The Force. Of course it needs them to survive.

 

I love the determination in Daylana's character. She isn't giving up without giving it everything she has.

Wonderful update!

 

I'm intrigued.
I love the fact that this story is set into such a far future. And looking for a Skywalker? I'd never expected the Skywalker line to be that important.

This is wonderful. Are you sending out PM's? If yes, could I be on the list please?

 

ginchy She's been a great character for me, having pretty much written her own story!

JediNemesis I wanted a little different take on Anakin's role in the Order's history, as well as keeping in mind that the more time which passes, the more "history" becomes distorted. I'm having fun!

canadianjedimama In a way, Vader proved to be sort of a cleansing of the Order, in a horrible way, of course, but still...

Gina A lot is riding on her determination!

Ceillean With Anakin's birth having been foretold in an ancient Jedi prophecy, it seemed to make sense that his bloodline MIGHT prove important to the Force itself.

Mira_Jade I like her. So it's a joy to write her.

---

[b]Chapter 3[/b]


Espa had not gotten any more civilized since she had last visited. The cantinas were still gathering places for the less-than-savory characters of the galaxy, though the taste of familiar Tatooine brew was enough to make it worth becoming accustomed to the heat again.

Daylana adopted the garb of the native people, which made her much less conspicuous, and luckily, she was already fairly fluent in Huttese, which might prove helpful. Though Basic was the primary language of the galaxy, a good grasp of other languages was almost a necessity of doing business.

Her eyes roamed over the crowd, looking for something or someone that stood out to her. The Force might give her a subtle nudge toward someone, and she wanted to make sure that her mind and heart remained open to possibilities.

To her surprise, she felt a hard clap on the back and turned, her hand already sliding toward the saber she had slipped inside a hidden pocket of her sand cloak. Her fierce expression dissolved instantly when she saw a familiar face.

?Rhorjim!? she cried out, jumping to her feet and throwing her arms around him.

The man grinned down at her, shaking his head. ?I?d wager that Grandmother doesn?t know you?re here,? he said, his tone slightly admonishing.

Embarrassed, Daylana bit her lip. ?I [i]just[/i] got in, Rhorjim, I swear.? She hugged him again. ?I was going to contact her; I just had something to take care of first. Things have been?busy.?

?Too busy to let your grandmother know you?re back on your homeworld for the first time in five years?? he questioned, quirking one dark brow. ?Now, Lana, that?s not going to go over well with Grandmother and you know it.?

?I?ll get in touch with her [i]today[/i],? Daylana promised. ?And I?ll go see her as soon as I can.?

?It?s not [i]me[/i] you have to convince, cousin, it?s our grandmother,? Rhorjim observed with a wink.

?You won?t tell on me, will you?? Daylana asked, forgetting that she was a Jedi Master on the Council of the Order and instead becoming only the remorseful granddaughter of a beloved matriarch.

?And have her yell at [i]me[/i]?? He gaped at her as if she had lost her mind. ?Not a chance!?

Relieved, she hugged him yet again. ?Thanks, Rhor,? she murmured. ?Come on. I?ll buy you a drink and you can catch me up on the family gossip.?

?Well?if you?re paying??

She ordered another round of brews for them both and they sat down at a tiny table in a far corner. They each took a sip from their glasses before they settled back in their seats to talk.

?So what?s up with you, Rhor?? she asked. He looked good, happy. His darkly bronzed skin was set off nicely by his dark hair and his golden eyes and Daylana could see the speculative looks he was getting from the fems. He looked dark and dangerous, as if he would break a woman?s heart and walk away without a backward glance. His appearance was completely at odds with the man she knew he was. In reality, Rhor was actually shy and unsure of himself, especially around women. Still, his unique looks drew appreciative female attention wherever he went. She had teased him when they were younger, telling him that he was actually part sand cat.

To her surprise, he grinned and looked down at the table. ?I?m getting married,? he

 

This is a great story so far! I love far future fics.

One vote for a redheaded Skywalker descendant.

And one vote for the descendant to be your Daylana!

 

I like this take on what could be...at least in the future.

I don't want to run out of Skywalkers just yet, thanks.

 

Wow, this is different.

Tatooine as the birthplace of the Force- I'm more likely to agree with Luke! Still, it makes an odd kind of sense.

The Order dying and Force sensitives no longer being born? That's not good. Wonder what's causing it?

Anakin taught the Order humility. That's a twist, but a logical one given it's been 2000 years.

This is very intriguing and I want to know the cause of it all.

If you have a PM list for this story, I'd love to be on it.

 

Can we hear more about Daylana soon, Mama Vader?