The Unchronicled Adventures of Ahsoka Tano, Book Seven

Chapter Twenty-Two: Tusken Attack!

ANAKIN SKYWALKER

The storytelling went on late into the night. Biggs and Luke were riveted by the stories that Anakin, Christo and Rex were telling, their big eyes wide in wonder. The two boys even took a turn, telling the story about how they had crept into the Tusken Raiders’ camp, complete with mimes and action scenes that Anakin was sure were highly exaggerated.

It was amazing, but he felt like something was missing. He was trying to bring himself to be happy, but it wasn’t working. He wanted so badly to tell Luke that he was his father, and not the first mate on a spice freighter named Hayden as he had said. But he knew that he couldn’t. He wasn’t to interfere with the boy’s destiny.

And so he sat up, in the light of Tatooine’s three moons, reflecting on this, after everyone had gone to sleep. He had said that he would take the first watch as an excuse to stay up. He blamed it on jetlag, although he didn’t think that was the true reason. It was something else.

He had to live knowing that Maul was alive. He had to live knowing that Padme and so many of the Jedi Knights that had lived in the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. He had to live knowing that he had failed so many times only to fail again.

“You didn’t fail, Ani,” a soft voice said, and a hand was placed on his shoulder.

He looked up to see Padme’s lovely face, rimmed with her beautiful brown curls that cascaded down her back. She was wearing the same blue dress she had worn when he had told her about his first fall to the Dark Side, when he had killed all those Tuskens…

“But I did. And now… I don’t know what to do.” Suddenly Anakin felt himself heat up. “I don’t even know what I’m doing here! I’m just chasing dreams, chasing futile hopes. Obi-Wan will never forgive me and you’re… you’re not real.”

“I’m as real as you want me to be, Anakin.” She looked up at him with her chocolate-brown doe’s eyes.

He turned around in his place on a rock to look at her, trying to hide his trembling bottom lip. “I want you to be real. I want this to not be some – some recurring dream that I’ve made up to help me. I can’t live without you, Padme. I’ve tried for six years, to heal and move past it. I could live forever and I would never get over you. I love you, more than life itself. More than anything.”

“Then that’s all I need to know. And now, I can be free.” She suddenly started to shine, far brighter than the candlelight-like glow that he had gotten used to, the way she would appear to him. Her dress turned from light blue into what seemed to be pure white light. “I love you, Anakin. And I’ll see you again soon.”

She shot upwards like a shooting star in reverse. He watched her go, silent tears in his eyes. “I always knew you were an Angel,” he whispered, and smiled despite his sadness

But then he heard something. Wiping his tears away, he walked over towards the origin of the sound. He gripped his lightsaber tightly. He wasn’t sure if it was thoughts he was picking up on or actually talking, but the voices scared him.

Where is the Destructor? Where is he who killed our brother clan a ten-season ago? Where is the One? He must die! We must kill him… Kill him… Kill… KILL!!

Suddenly they were everywhere. The Tusken Raiders were charging into the stretch of Beggar’s Canyon where they had set up their camp, armed with gaffi sticks and rifles, yelling in their harsh, primitive language that they simply called Tusken.

“Get up!” he yelled. “Get out here now or we’re going to die!” But somehow, they didn’t all hear him. Luke ran out of the tent straight after he called, armed with his stolen gaffi stick, but Rex, Cody and Biggs didn’t move.

He drew a blaster from its hiding spot in his boot and tossed it to Luke, who caught it clumsily. “It’s set on stun! Now make sure you don’t hit me, or any of the others if they come out!”

Luke soon got the hang of it. Anakin had a feeling that his son would make a great shot with a little practice. He clipped his lightsaber back on his belt, and pulled another blaster out of his other boot. He shot stun lasers at the Sand People with the same accuracy as he would have cutting them down with a lightsaber.

But all was not well. One of the Tuskens managed to hit Luke with a gaffi stick, and he fell. But it was clear that Anakin was their main focus, and that Luke was just an obstacle that was now out of the way. The Sand People wanted revenge for what he had done to their kind in a rage so long ago.

Anakin was just about to consider drawing his lightsaber to even the playing field against the dozens of Raiders when he heard a yell. It sounded something like: “WAAAAHOOoooooooh!!”

The Sand People turned tail and ran, and Anakin picked up on their thoughts again. Panting from the fight, he watched them go, suddenly remembering what he had heard about the Tuskens scaring easily. The Wizard, the Wizard! It’s the Wizard! Run, or he will cast a spell on us all!

Anakin nearly sensed the approaching man too late. He just had the time to tuck himself into a crack in the cliff face, but Luke was still out in the open. His heart froze as the cloaked figure bent over his unconscious son, placed a hand on his forehead and began to whisper a chant…

*Who could this strange man, 'The Wizard', be? What does he want with with young Luke? And how will Anakin react when he finds out who it is? But the New Jedi Order is still in danger, and with each passing hour, the time for Darth Maul's wrath to be unleashed upon the Jedi grows nearer and nearer... Will our heroes be able to save the Order? You'll find out in the next compelling chapter of The Unchronicled Adventures Of Ahsoka Tano!

I bet you all know who The Wizard is, but I'll leave it a mystery just for the heck of it. And I know, I know, I haven't done chapters in some people's POVs at all in this book, like Mace Windu and Christo, but those will come later. I promise you that. 

Another thing: I made a reference to Luke's training on Dagobah by Master Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back when Anakin said, "I don't even know what I'm doing here!" Like father like son, I guess... Also, does this scene at the end remind you of anything? *smiles conspiratorially*

Have a ghost tell you to go to a distant planet to train with a Jedi Master and may the Force be with you,

Sharron