Avatar the Last Airbender: Jedi Outcast - Book 1 - Alternate Timeline (TyLeexOC)

Chapter 12 - A Jedi's Weapon

"What are you doing?" Sokka exclaimed, Katara and Aang watching in amazement as Benjamin harnessed the force.

Benjamin could hear it—the whirring of gears as the wall descended into the earth, the grinding of chains and cogs as he used the force to assist the process. When it was complete, they were greeted with a long corridor, shrouded in darkness. "Looks like we found it," Benji said, taking the lead down the dimly lit passage.

"What did I tell you!" Aang playfully jabbed Sokka, who pretended to be in pain as the rest of Team Avatar followed Benjamin. The entrance was large enough for Appa to enter, and as they ventured further, Benjamin used the force once more to seal the wall behind them.

They walked in silence, unlike their usual banter during such journeys. Perhaps it was the solemnity of the moment. Katara and Sokka had little knowledge of the Jedi, only recognizing that the world's history had been nearly eradicated by the Fire Nation. People like Benjamin and Aang were the last of their kind, their histories erased, their kind extinguished by the Fire Nation. Their first encounter with a Jedi had been with Kiara, the dark Jedi who nearly captured them and brought their journey to an untimely end.

Maybe they didn't speak out of reverence for the fallen, or perhaps it was a stark contrast to their time at the Air Temple. They knew not to get their hopes up. As they delved deeper, the natural light of the cave grew dimmer. Sokka ignited a flame to create a torch as they pressed forward. After a few minutes, they entered a spacious room, about the size of a large classroom or a small warehouse. Several worn stone benches and a large marble fountain occupied the space.

On the far side of the room, three wooden doors were set into the walls, likely leading to various rooms. But that was it. The enclave was small and time had not been kind to it. Cobwebs and eroded stone adorned the fountain and benches, even covering the stone slabs they walked on. Benjamin had visited the Jedi Temple on Coruscant, where he had felt the weight of the force in those ancient halls and in the other Jedi who had walked beside him.

He had spent most of his life within the hidden enclave on Dantooine, nurturing his dreams of becoming a Jedi Knight. In that sacred place, the Force flowed like a torrential river, an omnipresent energy that seeped through every crack and crevice. The light side of the Force, pure and unyielding, pulsed through the very air.

But this was a different kind of enclave. A secret refuge, meant for the Jedi Order to regroup and rebuild if ever it faced annihilation. A place where Jedi would train in secrecy, recruiting new members in the shadows. It was also the birthplace of the war against the Sith and the Fire Nation, the crucible of their battle.

However...

Benjamin felt nothing here. The Force was absent, not dead but empty, a mere echo of what it should have been. It was as if the heart of this place had been ripped out, leaving behind a desolate void.

"Benji..." Katara's voice broke through his thoughts. She had approached him, her eyes filled with concern. Benjamin blinked, realizing he had been fixated on the eroded fountain. "Are you okay?"

He nodded slowly, his right hand absently running through his hair. His gaze wandered over the decaying walls, some parts covered in moss, others resembling the shattered tendrils of force lightning.

"Am I really okay?" He pondered silently. Standing there, his mind churned with a tumultuous sea of thoughts. There was an emptiness within him, one he couldn't quite fathom. Loneliness, perhaps?

He dismissed the notion. He wasn't alone anymore; Team Avatar was with him. Yet, they didn't truly understand him. Partly his fault, perhaps, but it was something he couldn't divulge to them. He was the Jedi on this mission, tasked with protecting the Avatar at all costs.