We shortly arrived back on Coruscant and as the clone troopers dispersed from the ship, I quickly followed them out.
Without hesitation, I paced straight over to another ship, a smaller, faster one.
"Delta, where are you going?" Obi-Wan called out to me.
I stopped and turned round to face him and Anakin, both following me.
"I'm going to Naboo. That thing...that clone took my ship and said she was going to pay my mother a visit. If I don't leave now, I'll be too late."
"Well then I'm coming with you." Anakin said.
"Thank you, Anakin, but you don't have to..."
"No, I'm going with you. Your clone is dangerous and unpredictable, we don't yet know what her intentions are. Every little helps, Delta." He persisted.
"Okay then. But we're leaving right now."
Anakin nodded his head and Obi-Wan told us to be careful. I also gave Obi-Wan the bag with the holocron; I knew I could trust him with it. We both got into the vessel and secured our pilot seats, ready for take off. I let Anakin fly; he was one of the best pilots I knew.
As soon as we left the atmosphere, we made the jump to hyperspace and the stars twirled around in front of us.
It wouldn't take too long to get to Naboo, but it was long enough for a good chat with Anakin.
"I never did ask, what happened to your hand?" I questioned, gesturing to the black leather glove on Anakin's right arm.
"Oh, I lost it a couple of years ago." He seemed hesitant to talk about it.
"How?"
"In a battle with Count Dooku." He bluntly said.
"Oh wow, so I'm guessing that's a robotic replacement?"
"Yeah, you get used to it after a while." He held his hand up and flexed his fingers, as if to show it off.
"Why didn't you tell Markcol we were going to Naboo?" Anakin asked, changing the subject. His question took me a little by surprise. To be honest, I hadn't thought about my brother, I hadn't thought to speak to him before leaving.
"I don't know. Probably because he would panic and overreact. I don't want this situation to become worse than it needs to be. Neither of us have seen our mother in years and Markcol would probably let his emotions get the better of him."
"How do you know? He was captured by the Separatists too, remember, he's probably stronger than you think."
I was slightly confused as to why Anakin was being so defensive and focussed on Markcol.
"Why are you suddenly so fixated on my brother, what's happened? Has he said something to you?"
"No. No he hasn't said anything. I just noticed that recently you haven't been the same around him. I remember, before he 'died', you two were inseparable; you never left each others sides. What changed?"
I hesitated before responding and looked blankly out of the window.
"It's complicated. I guess I just got so used to being alone and sticking up for myself on Tatooine. I believed for three years that he was dead and I eventually accepted it, I accepted the fact that I was never going to see him again." I sighed.
"You know, when you and Obi-Wan came to get me and we rescued Markcol, everything changed."
"What do you mean?" Anakin asked.
"It's hard to let someone go, but it's even harder to let them back in. Of course I'm happy that he's alive, he's my brother and I love him more than anything else. But I just got so used to having this empty feeling inside of me, that when I found him again, I just didn't know how to react." I began.
"And then to suddenly have the attention of the Jedi Order, who all of the sudden need me again, it's all just a little overwhelming. These past few months have been a real challenge for me, and I don't think anyone can really see that. In my head, I'm having this constant debate of 'do I stay or do I go'. I'm just feeling a little lost, and my clone knows that and she's using it to mess with me; hitting me where it hurts and going for the people I care about."
It felt good to get everything off my chest, because the whole time I was ranting, I knew that Anakin was sat there just...listening. He wasn't judging me or saying anything, just listening to me. I felt like he almost understood me in some ways.
"I know what it's like to feel lost." He said.
"When my mother died, I had the same empty feeling that you had with Markcol. I understand where you're coming from, Delta."
"And how did you get back on track...onto the right path."
"I don't know if I ever really did." Anakin slowly said. It kind of put a blunt end to the conversation.
We soon arrived at Naboo. The village where my mother lived was in the grassy hill lands, and despite not being there for years, I still remembered the way.
The village was small and the houses and markets were mainly wooden or stone. Not much had changed, maybe a few refurbishments, but it didn't look very different. My house was just on the edge of the village.
As we hovered above the small house, about to land, I saw the starfighter, that my clone took from me, parked outside. We quickly brought our ship down to the ground and Anakin and I both clambered out.
"You know, we probably should have thought of a plan." Anakin said, as we slowly walked towards the front door.
"We have one."
"We do?" He questioned.
"Yes." I stopped and turned to him.
"Kill it."
Anakin raised his eyebrows in shock.
I slowly stepped up to the wooden front door, I could sense that my mother was inside, but I didn't know if the other 'me' was too. So I swung the door open and barged straight in, Anakin following behind me.
I froze as soon as I got through the door.
There she was, my double, sat at a small table with my mother, just chatting happily. They both turned to look at me in shock. My mother hadn't changed one bit, it was almost as if she hadn't aged a day. Her familiar blue eyes stared at me and her beautiful brown hair fell lightly on her shoulders. I was happy to see her, but worried about what the clone might have said to her.
"Mother, don't listen to a word she is saying." I shouted.
"Delta?" My mother asked.
"What's going on? I don't understand...how can there be two..." she stood up from where she was sat.
"She's a liar and a fake!" I pointed at the replica, who was glaring menacingly at me.
"What?" My mother was scared and confused, I could sense it.
Slowly, the clone also stood up.
"How could you say such a thing!? That's impossible." She slyly said.
"Why are you doing this?! What are you trying to achieve?!" I raised my voice.
"Me!?" I could tell the clone wasn't going to give up, she'd try to take my place.
"You're the one who's just came barging in here, accusing me of being a double. I'm Delta Nova, daughter of Peter and Dalora Nova."
"No, you're not." I scoffed.
"Will one of you please tell me what is going on here!" My mother demanded.
"Yes, that thing you're standing next to, is not you're daughter. She was made in a lab only a few months ago. She's an exact, cell for cell copy. Same memories, same features, same everything. But she's evil and working for the dark side!" I said.
"What!?" My mother quickly stepped away from the girl beside her, looking at her nervously.
"Mother she's trying to trick you, she's the clone, the one working for the Separatists. Don't you believe me? It's me, Delta, your daughter." The clone was trying to trick my mum.
I could sense that Anakin, behind me, had no idea what to do or say; he was just as confused as my mother.
"Please, you mustn't believe her, she's trying to turn you against me!" I exclaimed.
"She's right, that girl beside you is a fake, a mask hiding the darkness within." Anakin said, defending me.
The face of the clone dropped a little and her expression became stern, she looked as though she was getting angry.
She clearly didn't like the fact that she wasn't going to win, but I wasn't going to let her replace me. I was angry, furious that she had come into my home and tried to trick my mother.
Jedi or not, I wasn't going to let her off the hook.
A/n
Hello,
Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed!
Happy for feedback and constructive criticism! :)
-A