EAST OF EDEN ( anakin s. ) ✔️

002 | Ripples in the Sand..

Eden smiled however, to his utmost shock. "Are you feeling any better?"

"Sorry?" His shock prolonged through confusion.

"The forest," Eden looked back ahead towards the path she appeared to know. "It's one of the concentrated energy points of the planet. Passing through it is sufficient to equivalate hours worth of deep meditation. It's supposed to help most channel subconsciously stored memory-heavens and it often helps soothe emotional pain and discomfort, depending on intensity."

Well, that explained pretty much everything that Anakin started feeling since leaving the clearing. "I've never been to a place so imbued by the Force before," Anakin admitted. "It's odd, but pleasant. Though very invasive."

Eden hummed in agreement, "I doubt you would find any place quite like this one. Millions of years worth of faith amplify the strength with which the Force influences life and nature on this land. This forest alone holds three temples built to channel and concentrate large amounts of this energy's purest form and they are older than everyone currently alive on Anope."

"You sure know a lot about this place," Anakin could not abstain any further from a chuckle that though they haven't spoken for some good long minutes, the girl seemed to already fall right into the role she was supposed to fill, like nothing ever happened. 

"I've got nothing better to do than learn," Eden shrugged, dismissing the point he made. "It's what is expected of me anyway."

"So, are you like the best student around here?"

"I'm the only student," she corrected him, but after just a moment of though, she continued, "so I supposed that does make me the best one, from the lack of competition on the matter. But yes." Eden slowed her pace to be able to walk beside Anakin and not strain herself to look back at him every now and then, "This pretty much means, right now, we are the youngest people on Anope."

"On the whole planet?" Anakin gasped his inquiry. "That doesn't make any sense..."

"The planet is largely uninhabited. The High Emissaries are the only sentient beings on Anope and they haven't had any new recruits since I got here. Something about Jedi numbers being too low and Force sensitive individuals becoming rarer."

"Well, how many are you?"

"About three hundred, scattered between temples all over the planet."

"With no offense, Eden, but that sounds like a true waste of space..."

She burst into a fit of giggles. "It seems so sometimes, but it's not like we actually keep outsiders away if they do stumble over our little corner of the galaxy." Stopping from walking right under a bigger patch of light flooding through a gap in the tree crowns meeting above them, Eden pointed up, "Look closely to the sky."

Anakin followed the direction in which Eden's hand pointed, after having stopped right beside her. She lowered her hand when he started squinting up at the lilac sky. "What are those?" he questioned, furrowing his brows once he noticed some sort of lines undulating on the sky, like wind made physical by dust, only without a granulation noticeable at all times.

"The Force affects the upper atmosphere the most. Only well balanced and experienced Jedi can maneuver a flight in and off the planet," Eden explained, meeting Anakin's eyes in their descent from the study of the sky. Now that she was close enough to distinguish the blue tint coloring his irises, she smiled. "Most Emissaries and Jedi believe the Force wills it so the planet remains protected, thus, a Sanctuary. Now come on, we're almost there."

"Almost where?" Anakin fired another inquiry instantaneously, remaining by Eden's side even after her attempt to take the lead ahead once more. He watched her with undeniable interest while she opened her pouch and started pulling out a second thin beige scarf, like the one she was currently wearing and has been fluttering around her body like hair floats in water.