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Saga - Legends The Seven Deadly Sith (Obi, Ani, Luke, Ben,Jaina) Updated 08/16

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction- Before, Saga, and Beyond' started by ZaraValinor, Apr 19, 2017.

  1. ZaraValinor

    ZaraValinor Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 31, 2002
    I don't own Star Wars. If I did, it would have Ben Skywalker not Ben Solo. This starts in Beyond but the majority will be in Saga.

    Prologue

    It was Avarice’s idea, though Voracious and Luxur quickly lent their aid. Yet, it was Ire that learned how to execute it. It didn’t take long to find the appropriate planet. Each of the seven deadly Sith brought one or two of their acolytes to the place of sacrifice. It was an all but an uninhabitable world. A planet in its infancy, volcanic and violent. Tribesmen had been gathered, men, women and children and brought to the largest volcanoes edge.

    As they approached the volcano, the tribesmen trembled long before they knew what the Sith planned. The tribesmen’s skin was thick, almost leather like, to protect them from the constant heat and sulfurous air. Even with the Force, Ire felt it difficult to breath. These indigenous people had long feared this rupture in the earth’s crust. Perhaps they even had gone as far as to give it a status of godhood. A vengeful, angry god. One that Ire had no problem using to his advantage.

    This was their first attempt to achieve their goals, leaving their brothers and sisters on Korriban to prepare for the transfer. And even more to keep Skywalker and his band occupied. Once they made the transfer and everything was going according to plan. There would be no Skywalker to interfere.

    The trek up the mountain was long and laborious. The acolytes had spent weeks constructing a pathway that would allow the Hutt, Voracious, slither up to the volcano’s edge. Narcix had wanted to leave Voracious behind. But it would take all seven of them to control the release of the Force.

    The heat was incredible. A violent torrent of superheated rock, that built up underneath the earth until it found a crack and was released to spill its acid like venom. Ire had once been like that himself, until there were no more barriers to his power. Until he’d shaken off the shackles and let the true power of the Force free.

    It was because of this that the tribesmen allowed the Sith to lead them to their death. The weak, the feeble, would follow anyone with strength. It was why the Sith had the right to rule. It was why they would push these beings into the volcano and use the Force of others to open a rift.

    Ire looked to the others, all having taken their positions around the mouth of the volcano.

    He closed his eyes, gave the signal.

    The acolytes lead them to their deaths. And with each one, Ire and the others could feel that little extra bump in the force. He grabbed onto it, stretched it, strengthened it until it came to a point. The other Sith began to add their own stolen power. They single became heavier and heavier. The sheer concentration it took to hold it, caused Ire to disregard the heat of the volcano burning the tips of his boots, the flames liking at his robes and skin.

    He cried out with the effort.


    /hr}

    Luke Skywalker, the Grand Master of the Jedi, was awakened by an all too familiar claxon. He’d barely had time to rub the sleep from his eyes before his son, Ben, had come into his room. His seventeen-year-old son had spared a thought for his father when he’d chosen quarters right next to Luke’s. Luke had been grateful for the gesture, but it was times like this that he wished Ben had been less attentive. His boy had never known a time of peace.

    “Ben?” he said, not needing to elucidate further. The distance that had once existed between them had been swallowed up in the wake of Mara’s death.

    “Looks like the Sith,” Ben said, pulling clothes from Luke’s closest and tossing them to his father. “Another hit and fade probably.”

    Luke climbed out of his sleep clothes and into the ones Ben had selected, then caught the lightsaber Ben tossed at him. “Fighters?”

    “Yeah, couple dozen. Doesn’t make sense, though. They know by now how many we can throw at them. Still they peck like a Degnic bird. Durron’s scrambled the fighters. But it also looks like they’re sending down ground troops.”

    “That’s new,” Luke said. Before he could stand up. Ben pressed a ration into his hand.

    “Eat first,” Ben said. “This isn’t anything they can’t solve on their own for a few minutes.”

    The actions and the words were straight from Mara. Ben was trying to fill a void that wasn’t his responsibility. If anything, Luke should be attending to him. “The children?”

    “Secured in the escape tunnels. And yes, I’ve got a droid down their making sure all the escape pods are ready if need be.”

    Luke swallowed a mouthful of gritty tasteless grain and protein. He gave Ben a mischievous smile. “Perhaps I should retire, you seem to have everything all in hand.”

    Ben paused from his frantic hovering. “Dad don’t say that. Not even as a joke. We both know I didn’t inherit an iota of yours or Aunt Leia’s diplomacy. I’m good at giving orders that have already been created. I’m just following your protocols.” He returned Luke’s grin. “Besides, you have to figure out what the shav they’re trying to accomplish. While you’re busy saving the galaxy, the rest of us can make sure you’re kept safe.”

    They were out in the hall when Jaina met up with them. “Some of the ground carriers have made it to the surface. They’re converging on the academy now.”

    “Did Durron send out the sentries?” Ben asked.

    “Master Durron,” Jaina reminded.

    Ben rolled his eyes. “Master Durron, the great and exalted, did he send out the sentries?”

    “Ben,” Jaina tsked. It was an old argument. Ben didn’t truly hold a grudge. He’d risked his life enough times for Kyp to know the boy didn’t truly hate the Jedi Master. But Luke was sure if Ben ever married, Kyp wouldn’t be on his list to be best man. It troubled Luke that Ben probably didn’t have any man on his list.

    “They’ll need help,” Ben continued, ignoring the reprimand. “I’ll be outside. Dad needs…”

    “No, I’m coming with you.” Luke felt it. A whisper of the Force. He took Jaina’s hand. “And you?”

    “With you,” Jaina said with a small smile. “As always.”

    Ben opened his mouth to protest, but Luke delayed him with a hand. “Ben I appreciate your concern, but there is somewhere I have to be.” That silenced his son. Once Luke used his Master tone, everyone knew to stop speaking and start hearing. He led two out into battle.

    [hr]

    Ire nearly gasped as the concentrated point of power coalesced like concentrated light inversed. He used it as a scalpel, cutting through space and time. The wound opened up, bleeding out radiation, at the center of the volcano. With another cry, he waved a hand, the wound opening until it was a terrible gash.

    Luxor and Avarice eyed the gash with hungry eyes. Of course they were the first to jump. Voracious, Narcix and Invidia were next. Acedia eyed Ire. Of all of them, she was the one who hadn’t agreed right away. She was happy with the way the Sith were growing. She saw no reason to go to the past in the hopes of destroying a legacy that was already tearing itself apart. Skywalker had lost two nephews; his niece had been on the brink of madness and the son…well that Skywalker had always been a mystery.

    He sent a demand mentally. The acolytes had gone from pushing the tribesmen into the volcano to cutting them down with their recently ignited blades as though there had been an eruption. It flowed down in ribbons of red light.

    He wouldn’t be able to maintain this much longer.

    Acedia jumped. Keeping most of his concentration on the monumental effort in the Force, Ire took a running start and jumped into the portal, taking him to a time, he knew the Sith could finally reign.





    Ben watched his father closely. He knew it was ridiculous and stupid. After all, Luke Skywalker had lived and fought through more battles than Ben could count long before Ben had been born. Yet the Force could be a terrible nag sometimes. He could feel something was going to happen. And as usual, it centered around his father.

    Keeping with his usual mode of operation, Luke had thrown himself into the middle of the conflict. The Sith had sent a bigger force than they had in the past, but not the full might of Korriban. Not for the first time, Ben wondered what it was they were trying to accomplish, other than dwindle down their own numbers.

    He met a red lightsaber with his own, twisting them together before arching it into the ground. As the Sith fought to pull his blade away, Ben lashed out with his left hand, sending the Sith flying into one of his compatriots. He picked up the Sith’s blade, flipped the pommel in his hand and ignited it as one came up from behind. The Sith roared and crashed to the ground.

    Ben closed his eyes, feeling a wave in the Force. He spun around looking for his father. Luke had traveled too far away from him during the melee. Thankfully, Jaina was close, her violet blade working in tandem with Luke’s green. Still, Ben felt he needed to be closer. He picked his way across the battle field, taking a mental catalogue of the injured as he went. Cilghal and her team would need the information once the Sith had retreated.

    The wave was cresting, he could feel it rise like a tidal wave, the fall most certainly aiming for Luke and Jaina. For the most part, the Sith sent their acolytes to do their dirty work, those trained in basic knowledge in the Force, those who were expendable. Several were already littered at the two Jedi Masters feet, but more still were trying to press their advantage by sheer numbers.

    Ben leaped over the acolytes, joining his father and cousin. His blue blade parried several attacks before he dropped to the ground and cut his leg through those of two acolytes. They went down and he made sure they stayed down. He’d found it an inherent problem with most Force-users, they rarely mixed saber play with hand-to-hand. There were distinct advantages to being the son of Mara Jade Skywalker.

    He raised his blue blade and his stolen one up in a cross over his head as one of the acolytes brought an aggressive downward thrust toward him. He came up and threw the captured Sith blade towards the acolyte. The Sith stumbled back.

    “Anybody else have a bad feeling?” Ben called.

    “Any thoughts, Uncle Luke?” Jaina asked.

    When his father didn’t answer, Ben chanced a glance to look at him. Luke was still fighting, but there was a look in his eyes, a distance that told Ben that he wasn’t seeing everything in front of him.

    “Dad,” he cried. It didn’t shake Luke out of his reverie.

    “Ben, behind you,” Jaina warned.

    He brought his own attention back to the matter at hand, but it was too late. Still he managed a sloppy parry that caused the Sith acolyte’s blade to go down his side, instead of through his neck. He barely had time to cry out as the blade skimmed down his left side, charring unisuit and skin alike before the wave came down.




    Time and space were strange things. The backward planet the Sith had left in their time, became a well-populated if somewhat backwater world with a spaceport. It had taken a lot of difficult calculations and several navicomputers to ensure that the space they came out of nearly 80 years into the past would align with a world that could take them to any destination they desired. Still Ire was surprised how well it had worked.

    He exchanged glances with his six brothers and sisters. They had work to do. First stop, Chancellor Palpatine’s office, Coruscant.




    The Force worked in mysterious ways. One moment, they’d been battling a legion of Sith and their acolytes, the next they were on a landing platform. Watching as two ships approached. Ben looked up as the aquiline ship passed overhead, and Luke caught him as the pain flashed anew. Luke lowered him to the ground.

    “What happened?” he gasped, resisting the urge to hold the sound with his hands as his father looked at it.

    Luke glanced around before ordering, “Jaina, watch those ships, something still feels disturbed.” He turned to Ben. “You’re supposed to be the observant one, the level-headed one. This needs to stop. I don’t need my seventeen-year-old son looking after me.”

    Ben was about to argue when he felt the spike of danger. “Dad.”

    His father’s eyes were stern. “Stay here.”

    He pushed passed the pain and offered a wry smile. “Hey, this is the first relaxation I’ve had in years. I’m not going anywhere.”

    Luke smiled and ran off to help Jaina. Ben waited in a haze of pain. Wind whipped all around him and carried part of a conversation.

    “I guess I was wrong. There was no danger.”

    Internally, Ben groaned. Fate had a nasty habit of proving such statements wrong. He wasn’t surprised when something exploded.
     
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  2. ZaraValinor

    ZaraValinor Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 31, 2002
    Chapter 2:

    Jaina managed to get to the three beings descending the ramp of what looked like an Old Republic style Nubian cruiser in its prime. She made a diligent effort not to let herself get distracted by the pretty ship while rescuing the unsuspecting victims. She snagged one with the Force and the other two with a hand to each arm. They were too stunned to put up much of a fight. With an effort of will she flung all of them off the ramp, physically and mentally. Still she felt the heat and the bite of the explosion for a moment before she felt the gust of Force that Uncle Luke heaved at it.

    Unfortunately, that put them directly under the ship. She heard the hull groan and strain as the heat from the blast and Uncle Luke’s own power had disturbed it. She reached out to the Force, while urging, “Go, go.”

    She watched them skitter out on hands and knees, while keeping part of her consciousness on the ship. Not that she didn’t think that Luke could handle one cruiser, she just didn’t want any surprises.

    Something snapped on the underside of the ship and a moment later, she felt Ben’s strength come to join his father’s. She sighed. She wasn’t sure what had come over her young cousin, why he felt he had to treat Luke like a 19-year-old kid straight off the farm. Something had spooked him. Whether it was a sign in the Force or something more to do with the anniversary of Mara’s death or something else entirely, Jaina wasn’t sure. She just knew that her uncle was about ready to do his own intervention.

    “Cordé,” a voice cried. Jaina dusted debris off her hands and knees. She looked up in time to see two women hug one another fiercely. Luke had one arm around Ben, keeping him steady. Jaina did a double take when she saw Artoo trundle behind them.

    “We are grateful for your help, Master Jedi,” a deep-voice said. She saw a man with deep brown skin approach her uncle and cousin. “If it wasn’t for you, we would have lost the Senator.”

    Jaina turned to the two women. One was elaborately dressed, the other in a uniform matching the man who was, to Jaina’s trained eye, security. Jaina took the time to look around the area. They were on Corusant. But, it wasn’t the Coruscant of her memory, nor the Coruscant of her childhood.

    “We were happy to help,” Luke said.

    “Yet, you’re Padawan is injured. My apartment is not far from here, please allow us to provide medical assistance,” the elaborate dressed woman said.

    Luke looked at Ben who had sagged a little more during the conversation. Her young cousin nodded. “I also saw something. I might be able to help with the investigation.”

    The other woman brightened at Ben’s words. “Please follow us.”

    Jaina looped Ben’s other arm around her shoulder, careful not to disturb the charred flesh. She was surprised when they were led through the roof into the building, instead of calling for a speeder. Backwards network of hallways, led eventually to an unmarked entrance that required a bio-reading from the security man. Apparently, this was not the first attempt on the senator’s life. It opened into a beautiful apartment decorated in lavish yellows and blues.

    She and Luke led Ben to the couch and helped ease him down. He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath, centering himself.

    “I believe there is a medkit in my bedroom. Padmé will you help me look at it. Captain Typho please check security.”

    They all stiffened at the name Padmé. “Where in the kriff are we?” Ben grunted.

    Jaina lightly slapped him in consternation. “I think the appropriate question would be, when in the kriff are we?”

    Ben glared up at here. “How come it’s okay for you and not for me to swear?”

    “I’m older and you’re being stupid,” Jaina countered.

    “But if that’s true, then that…Dad, that’s…,” Ben drew off, unable to complete the thought.

    “My mother,” Luke concluded. He looked back partly to ensure they were alone, partly to hide the longing at catching a glimpse of her again. “It’s conjecture at the moment. We don’t really know what is happening.”

    “I’ve never felt the Force like that before,” Ben argued. “I’m willing to bet, you haven’t had much experience with it either.”

    “No, that was a unique experience.” He studied Jaina’s face. “And there is a resemblance.”

    Jaina nodded, she ran a hand down her cheek. She could almost trace the similarities. Dark hair, dark eyes, Padmé’s face was younger, rounder, her lips fuller but missing that ability to curve into a Solo grin. Jaina shook her head. “Did the Sith do this?”

    “I don’t think so,” Luke said. “The Force didn’t feel tainted. It was just…rushed.”

    Jaina gestured for silence as Padmé came out of her room. She held out the medkit to Luke and her uncle took it with some trepidation. He was careful not to openly stare, but she could feel him questioning, gauging the young woman, while he worked on his son. Ben for his part watched Luke with the same intensity. He breathed a sigh when Luke pressed the bacta patch on his side.

    “You haven’t got any painkiller, do you?”

    “Use the Force,” Luke countered. “Focus on your injuries and away from me.”

    Captain Typho returned, cutting off the witty retort Jaina sensed on Ben’s lips. “The Chancellor has requested a meeting with you tomorrow morning.”

    “We should go with you,” Ben said, his eyes still closed. “I haven’t reported what I’ve seen and I’d feel better if you continued to have protection.” He winced as he realized how that might sound to Captain Typho. “Not that you aren’t doing your best.”

    Luke patted Ben’s shoulder. “What Ben means is that we offer you our continued assistance?”

    “That would be most welcome, Master…,” Captain Typho drew off, realizing for the first time, the group of Jedi had never given their names.

    “Jade,” her uncle responded. “Luke Jade.”

    Jaina stilled at the exchange. If there was any evidence she needed that they weren’t in a time of their own it was someone not recognizing her uncle. If they’d been on some little backwater planet that hadn’t even dreamed of the holonet, then maybe she could almost believe it. But even then, word of the last and first Jedi Master had spread like the Maglathian plague. Everyone in the galaxy from the core to the unknown regions had heard of Luke Skywalker. Ninety-nine percent of those beings could identify him on sight.

    “Will you be returning to the Temple, Master Jade?” Padmé asked.

    Luke looked down at Ben, who had melted against the cushions of the couch, his eyes closed. “Would it be too much to ask to stay the night? The wound isn’t deep by it is widespread. I’d like him to rest.”

    “Of course,” Padmé said.

    Luke turned to Captain Typho. “Jaina and I will take watch if you and your security team would like to rest.”

    Jaina watched as Padmé and Cordé bent their heads together, speaking in soft voices. They looked and acted like siblings. The old ache that never really went completely away came back in a hollow roar inside her chest. As much as she loved Ben, he wasn’t Anakin, he wasn’t Jacen. At least the Jacen she liked to remember, not the one she’d been forced to kill. Her brothers were gone and her cousin was nearly young enough to be her own son.

    She doused that pain and filled it with another. Her confidant was Jag now. As precarious and unsettling as their relationship could be, she missed him fiercely now. She wondered if time had progressed, if Kyp was worrying about where they were. If he’d called her mother and father. Or if time had just paused, stopped and was awaiting the outcome of whatever the hell was going on.

    Luke’s hand fell on her shoulder. For the first time, she realized that Ben was asleep and that Padmé’s apartment was silent. “Sleep,” her uncle said. “I’ll take first watch. I have much to think and meditate on.”

    “What are we going to do?” she asked.

    “I overheard part of the conversation Captain Typho had with Palpatine’s assistant. Master Yoda and a several Jedi will be there tomorrow. If nothing else, a conversation with Yoda might help set us on our path.”

    Palpatine. Force. She hadn’t even thought of that. The very thought of being in the same room with him, sent a shiver down her back. She didn’t know how Luke could be so casual about it. “We’ve probably already changed the past.”

    “Most likely,” Luke agreed. He blew out a sigh, his eyes taking in the apartment. “I don’t think the Sith sent us back, but it must have something to do with the hit and fades. That was the light reacting to something quite deadly. My distraction, that Ben thought he needed to rescue me from, it wasn’t just from the wave. There was death. Violent. Pointed. It tore at the fabric of the Force. Whatever happened, whatever the Sith did. The three of us being here is the Force’s solution.”

    “What are we going to do with the mother bantha, here?” she said, nodding towards Ben.

    Luke ran a hand through his hair. “You’ve got me. He’s stubborn and reckless and far too intelligent for his own good. Add his strength in the Force, he’s more troublesome than I ever was.” The sting of the words was blunted by the obvious love and affection in Luke’s voice and eyes. “The last thing I need is someone else dying in an effort to protect me from something I am more than capable of facing.”

    Jaina didn’t ask. She really didn’t need to. Aunt Mara’s death was a wound that Luke had let heal, but the scar was gnarled and stiff. Under pressure it sometimes burned red. “Does he have a reason, Uncle Luke?”

    Luke shook his head. “Not that I’m aware of. I’ve asked, but if there’s been a hint in the Force he isn’t saying. And I…I don’t like looking into the future. Sometimes the Force will guide me there. But I don’t go searching for what will be. Just what is.” He grasped Jaina’s hand gave it a reassuring squeeze. “I am alive.”

    “I’m glad,” Jaina said. She rose to her feet and crossed to the other couch parallel to the one Ben was fast asleep on. “Wake me in four hours.”




    Padmé held her ear to the door, straining to hear as the Jedi conversed.

    “M’lady,” Cordé said. “You should really rest.”

    Padmé waved her to silence. She’d not been in politics for nearly all her life without being able to read body language. The Jedi had been surprised by her. And not Senator Amidala but Padmé. She wanted to know more and feigning sleep seemed to be the best way.

    The Jedi were guarded and careful. At the same time, they were perhaps the most helpful Jedi she’d ever met. Not that Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan hadn’t been key to the freeing of her people, but everything had been formality, checking with the senate, surreptitious orders from the Chancellor. These Jedi seemed to consult with each other in glances which were elucidated when she and her people were out of the room.

    The Padawan had been injured but it hadn’t looked like it had come from the blast of the ship. It had looked similar to the charcoaled would that had killed Qui-Gon Jinn. Padmé bit at her lip, thinking. Had there been more to this assassination attempt than she knew. The Padawan, Ben, had said he’d seen something. That with the Jedi’s investigation might finally tell her who was trying to kill her. Though she already had her suspicions.

    The gentle murmur of the Master and Jaina settled down. She heard scuffing on the carpet and someone situating on the couch.

    With a huff, she walked over to her bed and slumped onto the mattress her mind whirling through the possibilities. Jedi were known to be there exactly when they were needed. Yet, they had saved Corde’s life. She frowned looking at her friend who was pulling her sleep clothes out of a chest of drawers. She was grateful for their timing.

    She stood up and told Cordé to get some sleep. After much protesting, Cordé disappeared down the hallway that led to her room. Dormé, who had kept the apartment up while she’d been gone, had already retired.

    This was the time that Padmé generally reveled in. The quiet. No committee meetings, no politics. She’d been in service to Naboo since she was 10 years old. And while that passion to serve hadn’t waned, she was beginning to feel something was lacking. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d laughed properly. Not the compulsory titter at something one of her colleagues had said, but a laugh that left her breathless with tears in her eyes.

    She’d been too young to be Queen of all of Naboo. And she felt that youth even more now that she was a member of the senate. She lacked the experience. Not in the political arena but in the arena of life. Part of her wished she’d spent a little more time being a child before she’d entered the legislative youth program, learning the simpler lessons of youthful interaction.

    She closed her eyes, the fiery bloom of the cruiser exploding playing against the darkness. Most of her friends had been chosen for their likeness in appearance to her. All were prepared to make that sacrifice. She vaguely remembered that time before, the companions she’d had in school before she was the most important person on the planet.

    Giving up on sleep, she went outside to get a drink. Quietly, she tiptoed though the front room. The Padawan was fast asleep on one couch, an arm draped over his eyes. Jaina was on the opposite couch on her side, a lightsaber dangling from her hip. Seated on the carpet next to the Padawan, was Master Jade. His eyes were closed, his handsome, mature face relaxed in peace, giving him a more boyish look. It was hard to gauge his age. She would have guessed late 40s to early 50s but there was such a depth in his eyes that spoke of pain and experiences that she could not begin to imagine that made him appear older.

    Master Jade smiled, having felt her watching him. “Puzzled me out yet?” he whispered.

    “Not yet,” she admitted. “But I’ll keep trying.”

    He chuckled softly. “I wouldn’t expect anything else.”

    “You speak as if you know me,” she hinted, cocking her head to one side as if to view him better.

    “You have certain similarities to my sister,” he explained.

    She cocked a brow. “I didn’t think Jedi could know their family.”

    “We did not meet until we were nineteen.”

    “Twins. Is she a Jedi as well?”

    “No, she was a senator. She’s retired now or semi-retired.” He opened his eyes to give her a mischievous look. “We tend to end up in the thick of things.”

    “I’ve observed most Jedi do,” she agreed lightly. “Are you comfortable? Is there anything I can get you?”

    He glanced at the Padawan. “You’ve done more than enough by allowing him to sleep. I thank you.”

    She withheld the question poised on the edge of her tongue. Sometimes waiting and listening could garner more information than blatantly asking. She supposed most Jedi were fond of their Padawans, but Master Jade seemed less guarded in this area. She could clearly see that he loved the boy.

    “I’m sorry to disturb your meditation.”

    He shrugged. “I needed a break anyway. The Force is being unusually quiet about the questions I ask.”

    She scoffed. “You act as though it usually answers.”

    “Not directly, no. But it generally gives me a hint, a glimmer at its will.”

    Padmé intrigued by his willingness to answer, asked, “And what did you ask?”

    “Why we have met at this point and time in our lives?”

    The question should have been unnerving but she found herself amused by the wry sense in his voice. “Should we have met at any other time?”

    “Maybe not, but I am glad to have met you now.”

    Confused but still oddly touched by his statement, she said, “I’m most grateful. I fear what would have happened to Cordé had you not been there.”

    He considered her for a moment longer as if he wanted to say more but held his peace with a brief nod. “Goodnight, Padmé”


    “Goodnight, Master Jade.”
     
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  3. MartyAvidianus

    MartyAvidianus Jedi Padawan star 3

    Registered:
    May 14, 2017
    How did the Sith gets so strong in the prologue.
    Orbital bombardments, troops landing to destroy the Jedi Academy itself.
    Keep updating. Best time travel fic in a long time.
     
  4. ZaraValinor

    ZaraValinor Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 31, 2002

    Thanks for reading. Their strength will be explained as the story progresses.
     
  5. ZaraValinor

    ZaraValinor Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 31, 2002
    Chapter 2:

    Darth Ire needed to end life to create the rift. He needed more death to keep it open. It was the way of the Sith. He’d sent the acolytes out to gather the first sacrifices. Once the portal was stable, then he could journey to Coruscant, take the lead on the invasion. Put Sidious in his place, but assure him that the Sith Empire would continue.

    He had sent Avarice, Narcix, Luxur, and Invidia to Coruscant to start the procedure. They were to turn Palpatine to their cause. Ire turned his red eyes to the skyline of ships taking off into the atmosphere. And if they could get rid of Skywalker, then much of their problems would be resolved. No balance to the Force, no Jedi to interfere. An entire galaxy bowing down to Sith rule. Chaos constrained, by those who knew better.

    In the meantime, they had settled in an abandon mining building. They didn’t have much in the way of Republic credits, but that wasn’t going to be a problem for long. Already the acolytes had been bringing them street dwellers, those who sold themselves, those who sought to sell. They had been sacrificed to the future, stabilizing the portal that could bring their forces across to the Republic. Voracious had already reached out to the Hutt consortiums. They would have their money soon enough.

    It was these Separatists that he needed to contact. They had already stepped away from the Republic, took them one step away from being under the Jedi’s jurisdiction.




    Yoda’s eyes fell on the three beings following closely behind Senator Amidala. A mature man, whose sandy blond hair was beginning to show signs of aging but carried the light of the Force so brightly he seemed to fill in the dark and dank corners of the chancellor’s office by his mere presence, a dark-haired woman who seemed to sing like a sword struck by iron, and the young boy who watched everything with a measuring, critical eye. The man turned to meet his gaze offered a smile that put a decidedly mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

    Internally, Yoda hmphed. There were very few who would play his own tricks against him. Whoever, this young Jedi was, Yoda was too old to be fascinated by his mystique.

    He greeted Senator Amidala, relieved that the bombing of the landing platform hadn’t been more tragic. He hadn’t heard all the details, but the three unknown Jedi had been key to the survival of the Senator’s entourage.

    “Do you have any idea who is behind these attacks?” the Senator asked, her concern well justified. Despite subterfuge, someone had still managed to track her to Coruscant.

    “Our intelligence points to disgruntled spice minors on one of the moons of Naboo,” Master Windu pointed out.

    “No,” the unknown boy stated. He didn’t quail when all eyes turned on him. “I caught a glimpse of the person who fired the bomb. The sort of weaponry, the skill of the attack, I don’t know about the other attempts, but this one was not by a bunch of minors protesting a trade agreement. This was a skilled assassin.”

    “I think its Count Dooku,” the Senator said.

    The older Jedi put a restraining hand on the boy as he opened his mouth to speak. Master Mundi spoke in his place. “He’s a political idealist not a murderer.”

    “Count Dooku, was once a Jedi,” Master Windu agreed. “Assassination isn’t in his character.”

    “Uncertain times can breed unusual characteristics,” the older Jedi said. He flicked a glance at the Chancellor. “The dark side can make many things difficult to see.”

    Yoda narrowed his gaze at him. He could sense the Force flowing through the Jedi, but did not know them. Not the way he should as the Grandmaster. “The fact remains, senator. In grave danger, you are.”

    “Master Jedi, may I suggest the Senator be placed under the protection of your graces,” Chancellor Palpatine said.

    Senator Amidala took a step forward. “Chancellor, I do not believe the situation…”

    “…the situation is that serious? Oh, but I do, Senator.” He heaved a sigh. “I realize all too well how additional security might be uncomfortable for you. Perhaps an old friend. Like Master Kenobi.”

    Yoda felt a flutter of excitement from the new arrivals at Obi-Wan’s name. He narrowed his eyes.

    “That’s possible. Obi-Wan just returned from a border dispute on Ansion.”

    Now the wizened Grandmaster felt a sense of confirming relief.

    “Do it for me, m’lady. The thought of losing you is unbearable.”

    The young one said something under his breath and sent a look to the Chancellor that might have melted durasteel for all its heat. Still, Yoda was surprised not to feel the accompanying dark energy that such emotions usually arose in the Force. The boy may hate the Chancellor but he didn’t let that control him.

    Once the Senator agreed, she began to depart the Chancellor’s office. As if by some understanding, the three Force-users stayed behind as did Yoda. The older man stepped next to him. “Master, might I have a word with you?”

    “Many, you might have, if tell me who you are, you do?” the old Grandmaster grumped.

    There was a soft smile in return. “That is one of the more delicate things we need to speak about.”

    “In private,” the young Jedi added. “Most politicians tend to have eyes and ears everywhere.” The woman nudged the boy. “Except, Aunt Leia, she just knows everything magically.”

    “Go to the Temple, we will. Accompany me, you can.”

    Yoda spent most of the trip to the Temple, in watchful meditation. The Force echoed off the these three. It was as the Force was a vast river and every move they made, changed the course of the river. He’d seen such a vergence before to a lesser extent, but not to such an exponential degree. Anakin Skywalker.

    There was a resemblance, between the man and the boy and Skywalker. Yet, the three carried a calm that Skywalker had never possessed and Yoda could not see in his near future.

    They docked and the three watched as Yoda grunted his way out of the speeder. His quarters were sparse but comfortable enough. When Yoda sat, the older man and woman sat on the cushions before him, but the boy took up a sentry position by the door. Yoda’s ears raised in question, the fluff of his remaining hair dancing with the motion.

    “Always at the ready, are you?” he questioned.

    The boy smirked. “I don’t know any other way, Master.” This was an odd thing too. The boy spoke with a Coruscanti accent, while the other two did not. Most Jedi were raised at the Temple, under the influences of the core worlds.

    He turned his attention to the older man, the leader by the way the other two deferred to him. “More than eight hundred years, have I trained Jedi. Many by my own hand. Know you three, I do not. Belong here, you do not.”

    “No, Master, we don’t. That is why we are here.” The older man with the bright presence, sucked a deep breath, as if to fortify his decision. “My name is Luke Skywalker. Many years from now, I am the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order.”

    “Skywalker, you say?”

    “Yes, Anakin Skywalker is my father.”

    “And your companions?”

    “My son, Ben and my niece, Jaina.”

    That explained much of his confusion. It would seem rebellion and outright breaking of the code was genetic. Not that his own teaching line hadn’t contributed that rebellion. His thoughts strayed to Dooku, now one of the Lost Twenty. To Qui-Gon, the maverick. Even in his own stalwart way, Obi-Wan could twist a situation to his will with his own form of obedient rebellion. “Why come here, have you?”

    “Believe me, Master Yoda, we didn’t do it on purpose,” Ben assured him.

    Jaina nodded. “I’ve never felt anything like it. We’ve been in a conflict with the Sith for several seasons. We should be there now, continuing to defend our Order and our galaxy. The Force had other ideas.”

    Yoda felt fear rise in his heart at the name of the Sith. Obi-Wan’s encounter and victory over the Sith apprentice ten years ago had never left Yoda’s thoughts. He’d not yet been born when the Sith were defeated a thousand years ago. But his Master had been a survivor of the wars. He’d been raised on the horrors of the Dark Side and the Sith primarily. Quickly, he let it go, replacing it with faith.

    “Returned the Sith have,” Yoda agreed.

    Master Skywalker shook his head sadly, “They’ve never truly been gone, Master. Not even through your thousand-year peace. They wait, they prepare, they let their hate, their despair grow, and when we least expect it, they strike.”

    “Speak from much experience you do, Master Skywalker?”

    “More than I care for.”

    “But that doesn’t explain why we’re here,” Ben interrupted, drawing the conversation away from whatever thoughts grew grey on Master Skywalker’s face. “And the longer we’re here, the more chance we have to change the future.”

    “He’s right,” Luke agreed. “That is why we have come to you, Master. We need your help.”

    Yoda’s gaze moved from one Jedi to another. There was much about their story that seemed incomplete and fantastic. Yet, he’d begun to make a connection between Anakin and the three before he’d been given Master Skywalker’s name. It wasn’t necessarily hard to see Anakin breaking the Code and having a child or children, as the case seemed to be. The boy always felt more deeply than Yoda was comfortable with.

    A legacy that was passed on to the son, evidenced by Ben Skywalker himself. Yet, Luke was the Grandmaster of his time. What had happened to the Jedi Order to allow such attachments?

    “Trust you, how can I?”

    Master Skywalker turned to his son. “Ben?”

    The boy pulled a lightsaber from his belt, hesitated, then motioned to throw it to Yoda. The Grandmaster caught it easily, with a clack of his claws. His big limpid eyes brushed its familiar lines. He’d been there when Obi-Wan had shown Anakin’s progress on the hilt, when the boy won his first lightsaber tournament with the blade. It showed years of distress of use, but it remained the same hilt.

    “And if that is not enough, I will lower my shields and let you in,” Luke said.

    The boy took a step away from the door. “Dad…”

    Ben was cut off by Luke’s upraised hand. Something passed between father and son and Ben backed down from the intensity of his father’s eyes. Luke’s gazed moved from his son back to Yoda again. “Master, I trust you. If this is something you require, then I am more than willing to relent.”

    Luke lowered his head until it was in reach of Yoda’s arms. “Lower your shields, you will. Go into your mind, I need not.”

    Yoda hadn’t been prepared. For the first time, he caught a glimpse of what the other council members felt when he was forced to lower his shields. For the last ten years, Yoda and the council had been afraid of what would happen if Anakin Skywalker had gone to the Dark Side, the great potential for evil if one so powerful fell, they had never considered what would have happened if he succeeded. Luke Skywalker was two suns in close orbit, until their light and heat was combined into one burning glow. It was all Anakin’s power, tempered, honed and settled by experience and maturity. He was beginning to see that they had been blinded by their fear.

    Yoda hadn’t realized he’d closed his eyes until he’d opened them. “Grandmaster,” he greeted.

    “Grandmaster,” Luke replied with the same solemnity.

    “Young you are for such a burden. Grow a beard, you should. Age you, it will,” Yoda quipped.

    The younger Grandmaster chuckled. “First I’m too old, now I am too young. There is no pleasing you, Master.”

    “Teach you, I did?” Yoda asked.

    “I was twenty-two years old,” Luke answered. “Knowing what I do now about the Order in this time, I’m surprised you agreed at all. Obi-Wan can be persuasive, even to the oldest of Neks.”

    Yoda humphed at the tease, but his mind was preoccupied by the idea of a twenty-two-year-old apprentice. Again, he wondered if things had been differently, would Skywalker be as recalcitrant as he was now. Obi-Wan championing a young Luke was expected. The Jedi Knight had more than a soft spot for his apprentice and worked hard to cover that attachment with exacting discipline. Whatever the reason Luke’s training had been delayed, there was no doubt that Obi-Wan had often used Yoda’s own soft spot for him against the Grandmaster.

    “Dealt with the Sith you have. Only one other Jedi has ever fought a Sith at this time. Defeat them, how can you?”

    “That is something the three of us can help you with,” Luke said. “True, I have the most experience, but Jaina and Ben have had their own. My main concern is the council and what we tell them. I think telling them that we are from another time is inevitable, but I get the feeling that proper introductions should wait until we earn their trust.”

    “Protect your father, you would?” Yoda asked.

    “He has a complicated future ahead of him,” Luke hedged. “Without knowing how long we’ll be here, it is best he only knows us as Jedi from another time, another place. At least, until I feel otherwise.”

    Yoda’s ears perked again. He’d felt the man in the Force, had seen him humble himself, now he was getting acquainted with the Master. “Talk to the council, we will. For now, your identities secret they will be.”

    “Thank you,” Luke said.

    “Now, can we put aside the mutual admiration and get down to business?” Ben asked.

    “And what would that be, young Skywalker?”

    “First, young Jade. That’s how Senator Amidala knows us and it will help avoid the more awkward introductions. Second, what can you tell me about Count Dooku?”




    It had been agreed that Narcix would do the talking. Invidia would back her up when needed. Avarice and Luxur would join them once they’d convinced Sidious. Or killed him. Avarice was hoping for the latter. He didn’t like sharing at the best of times. He was already bound to split the galaxy seven ways. He hated to split it one more way. He’d been very vocal on this point. It wasn’t as if Sidious had kept the galaxy long. Hundreds of years of planning and he’d held the galaxy less than twenty-five years.

    “Your breathing is disgusting,” Luxur whispered in his ear. Her deep sultry voice tickled at his ears. He was well-accustomed and well-versed in her violet body and painted with the green tattoos. Her lekku swung as she turned to him. “A little patience makes the ending that much sweater.”

    Avarice snorted through his snout. “You would know,” he said in Huttesse. He continued, “Tell me, why we need this sniveling politician anyway.”

    “Sidious has the lay of the land, he has the allegiance of the galaxy. Even if we do convince him to give up half of it for a time, he has the other half.”

    “We have an army,” Avarice pointed out.

    “That cannot remain here,” Luxur reminded him. “What we do now, will bring us power in the future?”

    “Yes, us,” he emphasized. “More than two.” More than one. He wanted this galaxy to himself. It had been his idea to begin with. Now, they all rode the coattails of his ambition. He needed them for a time. But eventually, as all Sith, he would take what belonged to him.

    Luxur ran a sharp nail through the spines of his head, down his face, tantalized his neck and stopped at the small of his throat. Her smile, seductive as always, held a mouthful of razor sharp teeth. “Do not get ahead of yourself, Avarice. The galaxy is a big place and there are many pleasures to be had. But first, we must get rid of Skywalker. Get rid of Anakin and the whole cursed family goes away. Sidious already has him in the palm of his hands. It only requires a certain amount of leverage to get Sidious to turn those hands against him.”

    “Patience,” he said as though it were a curse.

    “Patience.” Now her deadly grin was coquettish. “And I’ll be sure to make it a pleasant one.”
     
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  6. ZaraValinor

    ZaraValinor Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 31, 2002
    Chapter 3:

    Palpatine had listened to the two other ‘Sith’ with much disbelief. Of course, he could feel the darkness radiating off of them. Just as despair of light as himself, if they didn’t keep as well cloaked. He’d hissed at them as soon as they entered his office. He didn’t want all the Jedi council on his trail before he’d been able to execute his plan. The Separatists were just one more step to declaring war and he was looking at ways to lead the Jedi to ‘their’ army.

    He’d manipulated the situation perfectly, had placed Skywalker and Kenobi right where he needed them. And now, he was to learn that eventually Anakin would betray him for a son. That the Jedi Order would rise again, changed, different, clinging by the edge of its fingertips, but strong enough to repulse every threat, even one outside their own galaxy.

    Narcix was convincing enough. She knew enough of his plots, the schemes, even the beginning stages of the Death Star. All this work, centuries of building the plot, passing from one Dark Lord to another. He would have victory, but only for a moment. Not even his lifetime. He frowned, feeling the cold embers alit into a flame of all consuming anger.

    Skywalker would have to die, whipping the blood of the Chosen One from the universe and allowing the Sith to rule. Sidious lamented the time he’d spent cultivating the resource. But he’d rather rule and live. Damn Kenobi and his interference. It was high time that nuisance was destroyed.

    “I’ve already lured them into a trap,” Sidious said. “I’m sure you’re compatriots can do the rest. But I want something in return?”

    He watched as the Chandrilian shifted, her blond hair falling off one shoulder. The Sith might learn to work together, but their true loyalties only lay within themselves. No Sith Lord ever liked bowing to another. “And what would that be, Lord Sidious.”

    “I want Darth Ire to come here,” he demanded. “If I’m to help secure our future, I deserve a say in it.”

    Narcix hesitated, peering down that slim, smooth nose of hers to regard him. She knew, as he did, that betrayal and deception were the way of the Sith. He was sure each of these seven had plots and plans of their own, ways to disentangle themselves from the other once they didn’t need the other six. Where it could be one or perhaps two. After all, what good was ruling a galaxy if you had to do all of the dirty work yourself.

    “That could be arranged. Though, it will probably take some time. The gateway is not a simple thing to maintain. The power needed is enormous.”

    That explained why there were seven of them. One Jedi, even one as powerful and innately talented as Anakin Skywalker, shouldn’t have required so many Masters of the Sith. Especially, since they knew Skywalker was as foolish as he was powerful.

    “Perhaps I might come to Ire myself,” he said, amused at his own coaxing tone. The Sith playing at diplomacy was not something they did amongst themselves. It was clear Narcix thought she had the upper hand. Palpatine always took particular pleasure in turning that upper hand where he wished it to be. Let her believe that she was the most important Sith in the room. Palpatine was well versed in playing the long game.

    “Perhaps,” Narcix agreed. She caught her partner’s eye. Invidia’s black, glossy gaze looked over the finery of Palpatine’s apartments with longing. No doubt Korriban was a harsh, unforgiving world. “For the time being, I and Invidia will be your liaisons.”

    “And you’re sure that Skywalker must die?” He hated to think that such raw power would not be at his disposal.

    “The father destroys you, Lord Sidious,” Invidia said, a wave of displeasure ran through his body fur. “The son is entirely a much bigger problem.”

    “Can he not be turned, made into an ally?” Palpatine asked.

    “Many have tried. For what little progress is made, there is more damage done. Skywalker has a penchant for brining those that should want him dead to his side.” Narcix shifted, clearly uncomfortable with the topic. Strange for a Sith to fear a Jedi. “Many of our own people have fallen under his sway.”

    An adversary indeed. Didn’t the Jedi believe that anyone fallen to Dark Side could not be ‘redeemed’? Palpatine was almost sorry that he wouldn’t be meeting this Luke Skywalker.




    When Luke had suggested letting the full council learn about the traveling through time, the introductions of Luke and Ben Jade and his niece Jaina Solo, he hadn’t been ready for the repercussions. The council had gone apoplectic, lines of conversation thrown over the three time travelers head. He knew the old order had not liked attachments, had forbidden them.

    Still, he weathered the storm, watching Master Yoda doing the same. He’d fought hard to cultivate the patience of a Jedi and he wouldn’t lose it now, especially in front of those he hoped could help them. After several minutes of bickering, Yoda raised his gimmerstick and struck the tile of the council chamber.

    Within several bats of an eye, the council chamber fell silent. The number of times Yoda had thwacked him with the same gimmerstick floated to Luke’s mind. He’d hated that thing, but now he was beginning to see its worth. If only to get it to stop Corran and Kyp when they were being argumentative. As Luke was only beginning to learn, there were advantages to being old and cantankerous.

    Yoda deferred to him, letting Luke take the room. “I’m sure you have questions. I am willing to answer any and all, as truthfully as I can without causing too much of a disturbance.”

    “Disturbance?” Master Gallia asked.

    “You would understand that we have certain foreknowledge that could disturb the course of the future. We’ve probably already changed much just by being here.”

    “Why would you think that?” Master Mundi asked.

    Ben snorted in a way that reminded Luke of Mara. If he didn’t head it off soon, the boy would say something flippant, somewhere along the lines of ‘this is Luke Skywalker, wherever he goes the world changes.’ Or some other nonsense that Mara had driven into Ben’s head before she died. He tried not to dwell on the thought either. Memories of Mara were still bittersweet and could send him down a maudlin path.

    “What Jedi does not affect the Force and the world around them,” Luke said before Ben could offer a more flagrant reply.

    Master Windu watched him with a dark gaze, his face stony and clearly distrustful. “Jade, you can understand how this can be seen as a very elaborate ploy?”

    “Rather a ridiculous one, Master Windu, don’t you think? If we were trying to pull the cloak over your eyes, don’t you think we’d come up with something a little more realistic with a lot more evidence.” Ben cut in before Luke. “And I believe you meant to say Master Jade.”

    “Master Jade, do you usually allow such insubordination from your son.”

    Luke repressed a sigh. It didn’t help that both Ben and Jaina were on edge. It didn’t help that clearly, for reasons Luke couldn’t begin to understand, Master Windu was already suspicious of them. “I listen to any voice that speaks the truth and while I don’t really appreciate the tone, the words underneath are correct. We came here for help. I can understand that this is very strange…”

    “Why does your son have a core accent and you do not?” Master Windu continued.

    “Ben was raised for the majority of his life in the core. I was not.”

    “And where were you raised?”

    “I’m not sure you’d recognize it, Master Windu. It’s a dustball world in the outer rim.”

    The Master leaned back, deceptively calm in the moment, but Luke could feel the man sharpen, like a razor’s edge. “Try me?”

    “Tatooine,” Luke answered, knowing that he had to plan his deception well. He only hoped Ben and Jaina could keep their reactions to a minimum.

    “The same planet Qui-Gon Jinn found Anakin Skwyalker?”

    Luke found it easy to shrug. His father’s past was about as elusive as the Katana Fleet lost in the unknown regions. Artoo wasn’t very forthcoming either. The few things he’d shown Luke, were slices and spatters. Luke had often wondered if there was a command deep in Artoo’s coding, something that one of Bail Organa’s techs had put in to keep the secrets or something Artoo himself had done. If so, he had a feeling that it was beginning to be corrupted by age and system atrophy from Luke’s refusal to wipe his memory.

    “I don’t know. If Jinn told you Tatooine, then I have no reason to question that.”
    “You know of Anakin Skywalker?” Master Mundi asked, clearly trying to put amore genial tone to this makeshift interrogation.

    “Not as much as I’d like to, but as Master Yoda said, most of the Order’s records were destroyed.”

    That’s when he felt it, a sudden stab of worry coming from Ben. He turned to his son. The boy gave him a quick look. “Padme,” he explained. “I’ve got to go.”

    Jaina shot Luke a questioning look even as Ben raced out of the council room without waiting for a dismissal. Luke gave her a nod in his son’s direction and Jaina followed. Before the room could erupt again, Luke quickly explained. “We intercepted an assassination attempt on Padme Amidala the other day, Ben has been monitoring her since then.”

    “You expected another attack?” Master Mundi asked.

    Luke nodded. “Yes, and Ben agrees with the Senator regarding Count Dooku.”

    “That’s a serious accusation, Master Jade,” Windu continued. “He was once a Jedi.”

    “All it takes is one quiet moment of desperation for the Dark Side to sneak in, Master Windu,” Luke said. “And by habit, Jedi are bombarded by these moments. I suggest we send backup.”

    “Right, Master Jade, is. Lead the team, he will,” Yoda spoke up, his eyes solid orbs of steel. Apparently, Luke wasn’t the only one getting tired of all the circular questioning.

    Yoda called the Jedi to accompany Luke while the other council members discussed the new developments. Master Windu continued to watch him darkly.




    Anakin was tired but he couldn’t sleep. He lay on Padmé’s sofa, trying to appear as though he were sleeping. Padmé was all too happy to set herself up as bait and Obi-Wan had begrudgingly agreed to it as it was her idea. Still, he didn’t like just sitting here waiting for an assassin to come and kill his old friend.

    Not two arm’s lengths away, Obi-Wan sat meditating. He’d felt something strange in the Force the other night and he’d spent most of the ride home to Corsucant and the time home meditating on it. Anakin had felt something…weird. If he explored every weird twitch and feeling with Obi-Wan’s dogma, he’d never get anything done.

    He felt his Master reach out, soothing him with a thought in the Force. Or at least trying to. Anakin turned on the couch, pressing his forehead into the cushion. Whenever he closed his eyes, all he could do was see his mother suffering, hear her calling out to him. The Force was unkind in its revelation of her treatment. Obi-Wan believed it was a dream, a product of anxiety and guilt, but he was still concerned for him. At least Obi-Wan tried to understand, most Jedi still saw him as some aberration that was to be used but held at distance.

    He reached out to give Obi-Wan his own thankful reassurance, when he felt it. A cold that was so deep, it automatically made him think of that first flight he’d been on when Qui-Gon Jinn had taken him away from Tatooine. That night he’d been freezing, shaking alone in the dark, and Padmé had offered her gentle kindness. It had meant all the more when he’d learned that she was the Queen of Naboo.

    [i]Master,[/i] he thought.

    Obi-Wan’s reply was to wait. Caution. His Master hadn’t always had the abundance of patience that he held now. It was a remarkable feat considering how often Anakin liked to see his Master riled up and took a devious pleasure in being the one to annoy him.

    His senses were on high alert now. He could now feel that it wasn’t just one cold presence but many. It startled him when Obi-Wan leapt to his feet and ignited his lightsaber. Eerie blue light illuminated his bearded face. It was rare that Anakin saw the intense concentration that shot steel into Obi-Wan’s gaze now. Something was very wrong.

    “Master,” he whispered.

    “Get to the Senator, gather the handmaidens. Send her room into lockdown.”

    The intensity of his Master’s voice caused him to rise from the couch with slow deliberate moves. “What are they?”

    “It feels,” Obi-Wan swallowed, his features looking too pale and drawn in the saberlight. “It feels like the Sith I battled on Naboo. Be careful, Padawan. If you feel it necessary, abandon all previous instructions and be clever.”

    Despite the trickle of fear that begged for his attention, Anakin smirked. Obi-Wan could be just a recalcitrant as Anakin. He was just better at masking it. The smirk almost immediately turned to a frown.

    “Master, what about you?”

    “I’ll hold them off. You must get the Senator to safety, take her to the Temple.”

    “I don’t like leaving you,” Anakin protested. The last time Obi-Wan had been in a duel with a Sith, he’d nearly died and Qui-Gon had gone into the Force.

    Obi-Wan offered him a wry if distracted grin. “Oh, don’t worry. I’m not out for any heroics.”

    Except, Obi-Wan rarely saw the way he sacrificed his life so easily as heroic. “Master,” he tried to argue again.

    He was cut off by the sound of lightsabers igniting. “Go, Padawan. Now. Get them to safety. That is your mission.”

    Anakin ran into Padmé’s room, pulling his lightsaber but not igniting it. He had a bad feeling about this. Carefully, he put a hand over her mouth. She woke up with a jolt, her dark eyes widening in fear and scanning the area until they landed on him. He waited until he saw recognition in her eyes before removing the hand. He put a finger to his lips.

    She nodded, then stepped out of the bed. Anakin saw something at the window. He narrowed his gaze. Two yellow light pulled off from the steady flow of Coruscant traffic and turned to the large window in Padme’s room. Speeder.

    Anakin didn’t have time to think, he could only react. He snatched Padmé in his grasp and with a burst of the Force, flung them towards the hallway that led to the handmaidens’ rooms. He turned as they flew in the air, making sure he was below when they landed. It hurt, but not as much as he’d thought. He’d needed speed from the Force, not finesse. Padme still gasped a breath, most of the air being knocked out of her. Anakin wished he had a second to catch his own, his lungs were burning from the sudden lack of oxygen.

    The sound of the speeder coming through the window was deafening. But Anakin could already hear the familiar hum of a lightsaber. The Sith weren’t taking any chances. He staggered to his feet, pulling Padme to her own and stuffing her behind him. He thumbed on his own blade, casting the dark hallway in the blue light, crowing out the hint of red that had begun to crawl into his line of sight.

    He blinked when he felt that there were two of them. Two Sith as cold and empty as the vacuum of space. He shivered. He had vague memories of Darth Maul on Tatooine and the brief glimpse he’d caught on Naboo. There were two and two more heading in Master Obi-Wan’s direction. One Sith had killed Qui-Gon, a capable Master at the height of his power, what could four do to he and Obi-Wan now.

    He silenced that fear the best he could and lead Padmé back towards Dormé and Cordé. He felt Padmé hugging his back. When he glanced back, he saw that she was using him to steady a blaster. Vaguely, the very male part of his mind wondered where she had hidden it in that nightgown.


    The two handmaidens came out, drawing Nubian blasters as well. He motioned them all into Dormé’s room and closed the door, throwing the security lock down. Immediately he saw the red, security bars hum into existence.

    “What is it?” Padmé asked.

    “The Sith. Whoever wants you dead…”

    “Come out, come out, little Jedi Skywalker,” an accented Twi’lek voice called in a sing-song. “It’s time to die.”

    Anakin felt his stomach drop and his eyes turned to meet Padmé’s. “They’re after you, Ani,” she said.

    “Me? But how did they know?” He and Obi-Wan had been on Coruscant all of two hours before they’d been summoned by the Council to take over Padme’ security. How could anyone have known?

    He shook his head. Regardless. He was endangering her life now. If the Sith were really after him and him alone, he’d have to face them. Wasn’t that why Qui-Gon had brought him to the Jedi, why he’d freed him from a life of slavery, why Obi-Wan fought so hard to train him. This was his duty.

    “I’m going out there,” he said, looking at the controls and cycle them down. “You stay here. Turn the lockdown back on when I step out. Hopefully, they’ll ignore you.”

    “Anakin you can’t,” Padmé countered. “Stay here, where it’s safe.”

    “The lockdown will slow them down, but eventually they’ll get through. I’m hoping they’ll ignore you once they have me.”

    Padmé, as stubborn as he remembered, shook her head. “No. I don’t like this. I’m ordering you to stay here.”

    That commanding tone hadn’t worked on Qui-Gon and it wasn’t about to work on him. “Sorry, m’lady, but you don’t have to like it. You just have to do it.” The door sprang open and he stepped over the threshold. “Lock it down.”


    He turned and went to meet the Sith.
     
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  7. DARTH_MU

    DARTH_MU Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Feb 9, 2005
    Hey Zara!
    It's Mu. (Also Martyavidianus above).

    Anyway, I want to reiterate my comment above, great story!

    I'm really looking forward to your further updates.

    If you maintain a PM list for this story, you can go ahead and add me to it.
    You probably already know how, but it's just using the @ symbol in front of the user name.
     
  8. Darth_Drachonus

    Darth_Drachonus Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Oct 4, 2005
    Beautiful. I want to be notified when this is updated please and thank you!
     
  9. enzo90

    enzo90 Jedi Knight star 1

    Registered:
    Mar 28, 2016
    Interesting.:)
     
  10. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    [face_dancing] Yayness!!!!! ZaraValinor -- if there's anything I like more than time travel fics I don't know what. =D= :cool: Your characterizations are fantastic and I love the dynamic between Ben and Luke. They seem so warm and open with one another. Jaina is insightful & wiser for her experiences but not cold or embittered. I love that Luke gets to meet Padme and that Yoda can shed some light on things; if anyone can, he will be able to. Absolutely strong bit of irony interacting with Palpatine as "Chancellor" :p

    =D=
     
  11. Darth_Drachonus

    Darth_Drachonus Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Oct 4, 2005
    This hasn't died has it?
     
  12. ZaraValinor

    ZaraValinor Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 31, 2002
    @DARTH_MU
    @Darth_Drachonus

    Sorry, this hasn't died. I hurt my right ankle back in August. Thought it was starting to heal, but I had really done a number on my ligaments. One was completely torn and the other was so stretched it wasn't providing any stability. My ankle had tilted slightly. So I've had surgery to fix it. But through the recovery I've been most sleeping or taken pain meds, which didn't leave me with much of a clear head. So it took me a while to actually write anything. So here's the next chapter. Thanks for your interest.



    Chapter 4:


    Jaina caught up to Ben just as he was about to vault himself into oncoming traffic. She didn’t know if it was a male Jedi thing or just the males in her family. She caught him before he could make the dive and pulled him back in. She cocked a brow at him. “You know I do know how to steal a speeder right?”


    He offered her a quick smile and waived her forward. “We don’t have a lot of time.”


    It was simple to pop open the control carriage of one of the local droid control speeders, cross a few wires on the droid, add a little spark and the hover engines flared to life. She shot another look at her cousin that said, ‘see, I’m right.’ Force, when had she become the level-headed one? Sometimes she missed those days where she’d come up with the crazy plan and lived to tell the tale of survival.


    “You see that,” Ben said, leaning forward in the seat. She half expected to see him launch himself from the stolen speeder.


    To the normal passerby the flicker of red and blue light could be mistaken for regular traffic light or even party lights. Coruscant wasn’t exactly known for its sedate and modest lifestyle. But Jaina only needed a couple heartbeats to identify them as lightsabers. “Yeah, I see it. Well, it looks like we guessed right.”


    “Yeah, they feel familiar, don’t they?” Ben had been the only one who had seen all of the seven Sith leaders. How he escaped was something that Jaina still hadn’t convinced either Uncle Luke or Ben to divulge.


    She eyed him out of peripheral vision. “How many?”


    “Two..no four,” he said, closing his eyes tighter. “But more are close. Why come after Padme?”


    “Let’s find out,” Jaina said. She pulled the speeder up to Padme’s bedroom wall. They didn’t need to cut a hole into the transparasteel, somebody had plowed a speeder through it, but security lockdown had already fallen into a place, a large, thicker steel had sealed the breach.


    Jaina turned to her cousin and gestured at the solid wall. “Now you can be reckless.”


    He shot her a glare before reaching a hand out toward the wall. Stretching out to the Force, he urged the barrier back into its sheath, gears grinding as they were forced back into position.


    Once it had reached just short of Jaina’s height, Ben brought it to a stop and the two of them dunked under it. They took out their lightsabers but did not ignite them. The bedroom was lit in flashing red light signaling the emergency. Jaina wondered what had happened to Senate Security. They should have easily beat her and Ben here.


    The main room held at least three combatants, the hallway outside three more. The Force fairly sizzled with aggression, an agitated flutter across her skin. Ben had closed the Force around him, but there was still a tether reaching out to her. “You go straight, I go right?” he asked.


    She had no objections except that Ben was acting like a protective nerf in constant need of a herder. Giving a nod, she stopped him with, “Don’t be a Gamorrean.”


    Ben shot her a feigned surprised look. “Me?”


    Jaina shook her head but waved him on. She had no choice but to trust he’d be careful. He was a Jedi in his own right.


    In the main room, she found the two of the four Sith she and Ben had sensed. And a Jedi, clearly exhausted and doing everything he could to keep them at bay. Jaina thumbed on her lightsaber, and let the violet blade join the red and blue of the others.


    One of the Sith turned to face her, a woman with long blonde hair and eyes grey and cold. Those same eyes widened in surprise as she recognized Jaina. “Master Solo,” she greeted. “This is unexpected.”


    It took a moment for Jaina to process the accent. Chadrillian. The other being, a Bothan with black hair was still pressing an attack against the Jedi, but she saw the ripple of disquiet in his fur. This must be Darth Narcix and Darth Invidia.


    The Jedi broke away from an entangled lightsaber hold and held out his blue blade in front of him. He looked between the three of them. “It would seem I am interrupting a reunion. Please, pay me no mind.”


    Jaina gave him the Solo smirk. “I’m afraid it’s not an easy association. They’ve caused much harm to a galaxy I’m adamant on protecting.”


    “How is young Ben?” Darth Narcix asked. “I do miss his presence, even if Acedia wasn’t much for sharing. I believe I hold a spot in his heart.”


    She probably did, right where she’d plunged the vibroshiv. Ben had returned to them torn and bloody. “He’s fine,” she said with forced lightness. “Probably dispatching your compatriots as we speak now. I mean it did take seven of you to hold one young Jedi.” She cocked her head thoughtfully. “Well, seven Sith and all your dogged acolytes. And still you didn’t hold onto him as long as you’d hoped.”


    “Narcix, we should retreat,” Invidia called, still watching the Jedi and holding him at bay with his blade.


    “NO,” she snapped. “Not until we’ve destroyed Skywalker.”


    Jaina shook her head. “You won’t touch him,” she assured them.


    Narcix laughed. “It isn’t what you think, Solo. What do you think we’re doing here? That we’ve come so far back into the past for? A lark? I kn0w the Jedi are foolish, but certainly that Solo luck will see you through.”


    “I will kill you before you get close,” she said.


    Abruptly, the Jedi staggered, a hand rising to his saber arm. “Anakin.”







    Ben went into Padme’s bedroom. Wind from the passing traffic whipped at the edges of his hair. The smell of heated metal, and burnt ozone itched at his nose. They’d plowed a speeder through the window and into the bed. Something had caught fire, most likely the bedding, and had been put out by an orange de-oxygenated retardant spray.


    Force, he hated that smell. Truthfully, he hated all of it. He always had. The death of war, the fear of a galaxy, those overwhelming emotions that had caused him to hide away from the Force when he’d been a child.


    And now he had the opportunity to change all of that. Maybe stop the Clone Wars, kill Palpatine and save his grandfather. And Jacen. He wondered if that had crossed Jaina’s thoughts. That if things had been different, Anakin and Jacen could be alive.


    These had all been thoughts, thoughts that had hounded his dreams last night. Thoughts of time travel and fixing a galaxy he was sure was one fragile step away from breaking all together would have to wait until after he’d saved Padme.


    The Force nudged him then. Something was there, at the edge of his conscious thought. He’d have to meditate about it later.


    A red beam of light arched towards his head as he went to peak around the corner of this chosen hallway. He dunked low, coming back up with his lightsaber ignited. The blue blade stopped a descending red one inches from the top of his head.


    He forced the blades up, using his crouch to throw his attacker away. Darth Luxur stumbled back, her green tattoos shifting color as it fell under the blue and red light. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew that the Sith would be here. But why come after Padme?


    She straightened up, her eyes crinkling at the corner’s as she narrowed her gaze at him. She was older than she’d like to believe, especially for a Twi’lek. It was how Ire had found her, a washed-up dancer who had made a living using the Force to mind-trick men and women out of their credits. If they were a little more strong-minded than she could handle they ended up dead.


    By degrees, Luxur was the Sith Ben hated the least.


    His morning for her death nonetheless would be a short period followed by no small amount of relief.


    “Well, if isn’t the Sith’s favorite toy. You’re like a coiled serpent, you spring up in the least expected places.”


    Their banter probably would have continued until Luxur struck out, thinking in charmed. But there was a sudden cry of pain in the air. A male cry.






    Anakin starred at the placed where is hand had been. His gaze then switched to that same hand grasping the deactivated pummel of his lightsaber. He looked up at the Sith that was slowly advancing towards him, the Rodian’s face a mix of anticipation and glee. He struggled past the pain in his hand, tried to pull his left away from the aching cauterized mess to call the blade back and fight for his life. If he’d had more than a few seconds time, he was sure that eventually, he would have called his lightsaber, but the Rodian had his moment and he was going to take it.


    They both startled, turning to look behind the Rodian as the Twi’lek that had accompanied him, sailed through the air and hit the hall wall with a thump. Another blue blade entered the battlefield and a silhouetted figured stepped into the hall. He caught a glint of ruddy brown hair. Obi-Wan.


    The Rodian squealed in a language that Anakin didn’t understand. And turned to ignore Anakin. Thankfully, the Jedi Padawan slumped against the sealed door leading to Dorme’s room. It took more than a few steadying breaths to get him past the pain and have the presence of mind to pull of strip of his tunic off and wrap it around the stump.


    While he was working, the two Sith approached Obi-Wan. Anakin blinked sweat or from is eyes. The Sith had taken pleasure in treating him as a training droid. That stance wasn’t his Master’s. But who could it be, if not Obi-Wan?


    “Avarice,” the Jedi said. “Run.”


    The Sith didn’t run, instead he charged the Jedi with the familiar flurry of strikes. The Jedi was better at blocking the attack than Anakin had been. He met the Sith strike for strike, before seamlessly moving into some hand to hand maneuvers that Anakin had last scene in a cantina fight on Tarrel.


    The Jedi most likely would have won the duel, if the other Sith had regained consciousness. When Anakin saw her begin to stir, he fumbled with his left had towards his lifeless right hand. He his mouth became a thin line of concentration, afraid that if he took a breath of air that he would lose the contents of his stomach. The fingers were still clutched around the hilt, but they were lax, and worked to pull them off. This only added to the nausea stirring his stomach. He reached out to the Force to dull the sensation of building bile.


    The Jedi was doing his best to keep up, he was fast and agile, but the two Sith were beginning to close in. Desperately, Anakin tried to work faster, he didn’t understand why his working fingers kept slipping.


    “Avarice, Luxur, it’s been fun,” the Jedi said. “But your mission has failed, and reinforcements are coming. Time to disappear into the dark like the Strubb bugs you are.”


    The Rodian squeaked again.


    “Oh, yeah, he’s here too. And Jaina’s making friends with your pals now. Time for a strategic retreat don’t you think.”


    The Sith risked conspicuous glances back at him and Anakin felt himself shiver.


    “We’re so close,” Luxur said. She turned a seductive smile, to the Jedi. “Sure you don’t want to come with us, little Ben? It was so much fun last time. Acedia misses you.”


    “I’m sure she doesn’t,” the Jedi now sounded angry, his words clipped passed clenched teeth. “Now, say one word about her again and I’ll kill you both.”


    Anakin couldn’t follow the flow of the conversation and was surprised to hear a Jedi promise death with such anger in his voice. The fighting didn’t stop, at least not for a while. The Jedi was beginning to get tired when the Rodian aimed a shot to his head, the Jedi dunked, but the Sith cut a leg through his sweeping them out from under him, his motion sending him to the ground.


    It was a heartbeat later that Anakin, finally freed his lightsaber and he ignited it in a slightly awkward grip. He struggled to his feet, ready to provide the same aid the Jedi had given him. He blinked as he took in the scene. The Sith were gone and the Jedi was back on his feet.


    With a sigh, the Jedi turned back to Anakin. Closer in the light, he could see the other Jedi was quite young, his age, give or take a year or two.


    The Jedi paused momentarily as he noticed Anakin’s injury. The Padawan was making a concerted effort not too look at the stump of charred flesh. Though the agonizing burn was beginning to return now that the battle seemed to be over. At least for the moment.


    “We need to preserve the hand. They may be able to repair the nerves. Are you okay, while I get some ice?”


    Anakin nodded, giving up his attempt on standing and falling back against his place on the floor. The effort had left him drained and he fought against the unconsciousness that was cold and heavy around him. The young Jedi, picked up his hand as though it were just another piece of refuse on the floor and moved to Padme’s cooling unit. It took Anakin a moment to realize that the other Jedi knew exactly where he was going to find what he needed.


    His eyes narrowed suspiciously, and he was about to comment, when his Master and another knight he didn’t recognize came into the room. Despite himself, relief flooded over him. His Master couldn’t make everything all right, but he certainly made many things better.


    Before Anakin knew what was going on, the three Jedi were in front of him and the younger man, boy, was using Padme’s medkit to place a compression cuff on the stump of his wrist. Obi-Wan’s hand rested on his shoulder and he felt the familiar way in which Obi-Wan called on the Force. It was cool and warm at the same time. Cool on his hand, warm in his trembling body. It was balance in a way. A balance in his body, caring that countered the anger and hate that had just been thrusted upon him.


    “Ben?” the woman questioned.


    “I’m fine,” the boy snapped.


    “You’re trembling,” she countered. “Let the Master take care of his apprentice.”


    “I can do it,” he insisted.


    Obi-Wan looked like he did want to take over the first aid, but hadn’t yet actually grabbed the cuff from the younger man’s shaking fingers.


    “You don’t have to,” the woman continued. “Save your strength for then.”


    With that, the younger Jedi pressed the cuff into Obi-Wan’s hands with a mumbled ‘sorry’ and stood up to gain some distance. With deft fingers, Obi-Wan got the pressure cuff on his arm. The shock was beginning to wear off, Anakin’s mind turned to the more important parts of the night. “They were after me, Master, not Padme.”


    “Are you sure, Anakin?”


    He swallowed the last of his panic and breathed into the pain. “Yes, Master. They wanted to kill me.” Anakin’s eyes flicked to the cuff. “They would have too, if you and the others hadn’t been here.’


    “We can save him,” the boy said. He cleared his throat. “I mean the hand. I’ve got it the cold storage.”


    “That was quick thinking,” Obi-Wan said. “You have the advantage over us. You seem to know who we are, but I do not know who you are.”


    “Answers there will be, young Obi-Wan,” Yoda’s voice said as he came into the back hallway. “Take young Skywalker to the healing ward first, I think.”
     
  13. Darth_Drachonus

    Darth_Drachonus Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Oct 4, 2005
    Awesome update! I'm sorry you were in such pain :( I'm glad you're getting better though!
     
    Kahara and WarmNyota_SweetAyesha like this.
  14. Darth_Drachonus

    Darth_Drachonus Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Oct 4, 2005
    Oh wow. It's been so long without another update :(
     
    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha likes this.
  15. Ben_Thryss

    Ben_Thryss Jedi Knight

    Registered:
    Sep 13, 2011
    I hope you have the time and will to finish this someday. It’s a lot of fun so far. Really curious about Ben’s connection to the seven Sith. An engaging mystery.
     
    Kahara and WarmNyota_SweetAyesha like this.
  16. Cowgirl Jedi 1701

    Cowgirl Jedi 1701 Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Dec 21, 2016
    I'm liking this.
     
    Kahara and WarmNyota_SweetAyesha like this.
  17. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Adding my =D= and [face_batting] to the reviews above. :D
     
    Kahara likes this.