The Unchronicled Adventures of Ahsoka Tano, Book Six

Chapter Fifteen: Arrival On Cialone/ Explanations

*The return of the Unknown Character! Dun dun duuuuuun! (Sorry that was a little corny) I promise I promise that his identity will be revealed in the next two chapters. I'm still debating on whether or not to write something from Tarkin's or Vader's POV, but I will have the next chapter up by tomorrow night! Enjoy and may the Force be with you!*

Unbeknownst to the New Jedi Order, a ship was landing on a nearby peak. When he wasn’t at the Lookout or the indoor security outpost, Lux would usually wear an earpiece that would tell him if there were anything amiss in the security system, but in the chaos he had forgotten to put it on. Therefore, there was no one the Temple’s computers could warn when the ship entered the atmosphere.

The white-haired young man aboard shut off the systems with a well-practiced sweep of his arm, his long fingers dancing over the buttons and switches. The ship touched down with not even enough noise to startle a nearby family of rentherats, a native species with very good hearing.

He knew ships almost as well as Anakin Skywalker, the Chosen One and famed Hero With No Fear had, before his descent into darkness, and could beat nearly any pilot when racing. Or at least, he had been led to believe that he was skilled by those who had seen his fancy flying. He had even come in second place in the Kessel Run once, after all, and if that wasn’t skill then he didn’t know what was.

But he wasn’t going to pollute the Force with his self-absorbed thoughts. It wasn’t the Jedi way, and he had to concentrate on the task at hand, which was warning Ahsoka Tano about his vision of her future and about the four Imperial cruisers sulking just past Cialone’s third moon.

He put his brown hood on, exited the ship on silent feet, and then slowly began to climb up the hill. Once he reached the top, he was greeted with a beautiful view of the surrounding valley, which was just downhill of a single mountain. But he didn’t have time to look at the scenery, even though the Force was pulling at his mind, begging him to come sit down and meditate in the peace.

He slid down the hill, the sturdy but flat soles of his boots stirring up pebbles and small clouds of dust. When he reached the bottom, he began a silent sprint towards the camp.

If he didn’t arrive in time, then bad things would be sure to happen.

AHSOKA TANO

Ahsoka and Anakin walked down the hallway and into the Briefing Room, where they, Lux and some of the oldest padawans were meeting to analyze the situation, to see if there was anything important that they had missed.

Anakin said nothing, but she knew that he was in awe of the place. Through the Force, she could feel his sense of wonderment at its resemblance to the original Jedi Temple on Coruscant, which was now in ruins. Thanks to him.

She punched his shoulder gently, and he smiled at her. Together they walked through the door and to where everyone else was waiting.

Heads turned to look at her as she took her placed at the round table, and the holo-projector at its center. He sat down next to her, and she was suddenly aware that anyone could see that he had been crying. “Okay everyone, what have we to discuss?”

Zaydn stood up at his end of the table. “Master, if I may, I think that I speak for all of us. The return of the Chosen One is extremely strange, and we don’t understand it properly. Could you enlighten us in the matter?”

But before Ahsoka could say anything, Anakin stood as well. “I know that it isn’t that clear to anyone. I get that. I can’t exactly explain what happened before I… I came back, but I’ll do my best. I’m sure everyone here knows the story of Darth Vader. He’s… well, he’s me, in a way.

“But there are two halves to his personality, or mine. A Light Side and his Dark Side. In the middle is the person that the two sides influence. When I chose my Dark Side, my Light Side was cast away, hidden in the Netherworld of the Force.

“I was watching over you all every minute of every day from where I was. When I felt your fear, the fear of the meteorites, something snapped. I guess I pushed hard enough against the barriers keeping me away from the physical realm, and I was able to cross over. Then, somehow, acting on instinct, I summoned enough power to break away from the Force completely.” He paused, looking at the stunned listeners around the table. “And that’s what happened. Or at least, what I think happened.

Everyone sat quietly, absorbing this new information. Suddenly the door slid open, to reveal a hooded young man. Ahsoka stood up, her hand resting on her primary lightsaber underneath her cloak. “Who are you? Friend or foe?”

A smile became visible from under the man’s large hood. “Friend. I’m someone you know well, Ahsoka Tano. Someone you know very well indeed.”