Test of Time Book 1: A Father's Son

Chapter 2: Testing the Waters

"So why's it good news that he left behind this mechno-chair?" Luke asked his father as Anakin got up, brushing himself off a little.

"We can get information off of it by looking through the holo-recordings on the chair, as well as communication codes," Obi-Wan informed him.

"And be one step closer to ending this Force-forsaken war..." Anakin grumbled bitterly.

Luke eyed his father, just for a moment, hiding his worry for his father at the hardened edge in his voice. Obi-Wan sighed a little wearily. "Yes, that's true, hopefully."

Anakin cautiously approached the mechno-chair this time, though it didn't set off poisonous gas again. He fiddled with it for a few moments, and soon a small blue image of someone Luke knew all too well appeared. He bit back a gasp as he saw Sidious appear from the mechno-chair, rubbing his mechanical hand subconsciously. There was the man responsible for all the misery of the galaxy.

Anakin looked up at Obi-Wan sharply. "It looks like we ended up with more than we anticipated."

The two Jedi listened intently to the recording of the transmission, though Luke wandered over to the landing pad to look out and see how the battle had panned out. There were skirmishes spotted over the land below them, and there were still some fights breaking out in the sky. But for the most part, it was over. He sighed, then returned to the room where his father and master stood talking in hushed tones. Anakin seemed aggravated at something Obi-Wan was saying, a hard edge in his eyes, and it seemed he was talking in an angry tone. Luke shifted uneasily at the tension in the room, quietly observing them.

Anakin made a disgruntled sound and waved a hand in the air, his eyes locking on Luke at the side. "I believe you still have explaining to do," Anakin said, turning away from Obi-Wan. Obviously he was trying to end the tense conversation they'd been having.

Luke frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm still trying to figure some things out myself, so you're not the only ones confused."

Anakin sized up Luke with an expert eye, and Luke tried not to shift nervously under his father's inspecting gaze. He noticed that they both had a glove over one hand, or in his father's case one arm. Finally Anakin spoke again.

"I watched you fighting earlier. You relied very heavily on your defense. I think I only saw you advance on a droid once or twice. The rest of the time you stuck with a very basic form for deflecting their shots: what's the extent of your training?" he inquired. His eyes challenged Luke to try and lie to him.

Luke grimaced. "Not very much. Just enough to get by and survive."

Anakin looked slightly amused. "I'd say. It looked like you're just past your Padawan training."

Obi-Wan cut in, walking up to stand next to Anakin. "Maybe we're asking the wrong questions...Luke, could you tell us the names of the Jedi in the Council?"

Luke froze, realizing he had been caught. He didn't know who was on the Council at this point in time. He wasn't even quite sure what point in time this was! What could he do, tell them the truth? He highly doubted they would believe him. Still...he didn't have much of an option right now. "For me, in my time...it's just...me," he said slowly.

Shock. Complete shock rolled off of them in waves and was evident in their features. Anakin was the first one to recover. "What do you mean in your time? Are you trying to tell us that you're from the future or the past or something, cause if that's true, I'll admit that's a new one I haven't heard yet. Probably because a sane person would realize that won't work because of how crazy it sounds."