Control The Uncontrollable // The Acolyte

24. The Idol

Listen

You drastically turned around, trying to sense where the voice came from. The mountains were empty, you were alone or so you thought. The force was playing you a song in the wind, but it was soulless. You turned back around, ready to face your destiny, when yet again the voice appeared for you.

Darkness is only cruelty if you believe it to be

Now it only felt like the Force was teasing you. Quoting your own old words back at you. Words you weren't sure held it's meaning anymore. Perhaps cruelty was just cruel, without it's color. Good and bad, we could all be cruel. You closed your eyes, and placed the holocron back into the darkness of the force and sealed it. You opened your eyes slowly, when you noticed the presence of another soul behind you. You took a deep breath. Your hands were shaped like you where holding a ball, when you moved in a swift single whip movement, causing the sand to blow back.

"Is that how you greet another Jedi?" An unfamiliar voice said, walking towards you as the dust set.

Finally recognizable, Master Elzar Mann stood in front of you. A man you had looked up to for quiet sometime within the Order. You frowned by the sight of him. He was not the one you had envisioned to be here. Truthfully, the force hadn't shown you any man to be here, but you might have shaped your own assumption of who it would've been. Seeing Master Mann and not your own former Master did leave you with a slight disappointment. You let your hands fall down, showing your intention of peace.

Elzar Mann stepped towards you and let his eyes prying eyes scan you up and down. You did not look like what he had anticipated. You looked rougher than what people had described you as in the order. In pictures of the temple, you appeared softer. Elzar Mann was amused by this surprise.

"We need to go, I have my ship on the other side-" Elzar's voice was dark and confident, just like you had heard him on holograms at the academy.

"Is Master Sol and Yord waiting there?" You questioned, not letting him finish his sentence. You respected the Order, and you understood your place, but in certain situations, when you thought it was suited, you had no problem taking your own space.

Elzar displayed a quick smile, before he looked at the ground. It got silent. His silence told you everything you needed to know. Master Sol and Yord was not there, meaning they were in danger. You laughed low. Typical, wasn't it. This wasn't how you had wished to meet your idol, but saving your friends was more important than impressing a Stranger. You began to walk away, towards the sand dunes.

"You have the relics, the most important part is that we get them back to Coruscant," Elzar shouted after you.

You looked down at him.

"I'm not letting my Master and friend die," You shouted back at him.

"You have to trust the force that they'll-" You didn't have patience for his nativity.

"I know the man who is after them, he'll listen to me, i'm the only person on this planet he won't kill," You turned your back on Elzar.

You could turn wrongs into right. It was not too late. You trusted the force, and the force was the one telling you that you needed to be there, with them. After what happened in the temple, you knew that Master Sol was vulnerable. Maybe in a year or two, he could heal and understand that hatred isn't the answer, but it was only days ago. The wound was still fresh. Sol could hurt Qimir, and Qimir definitely wished to hurt Sol.

"Was it him who taught you how to use the dark side of the force?" You froze in the heated sand, at Elzar's accusation.

"I saw where you hid the relics, you created your own space out of time, not traditionally done by the Jedi," He continued.

Within seconds, you had jumped off the sand dune, marching towards Elzar. With the will of the force, you pressured him up against the mountain. Your hand up against his throat. This man was at least one head, almost two heads taller than you. He was famous for his strength within the Order, but you had the force on your side, and more patience than any man could hold.

"Just because something isn't traditionally done by the Jedi, doesn't mean it's the dark side of the force," Your voice was soft, non threatening, compared to your violent body language.

"You know I agree," Elzar laid his hand over your wrist, pulling it down.

You were far more interesting than his friends let on. You were what The Order should be about. Experimenting. Being different. Learn. Make mistakes. Find Solutions. So yes, Elzar did mean it when he said he personally agreed. It was just a time and place for everything, and in this case, bringing the relics home was more important than winning a fight. He could sense an annoyance in you for him, that you quickly let go off. He took a deep breath. A few years ago, he was just like you. Perhaps even now he was the same, only difference was that he was now Master and was allowed to be, well himself.

"We'll go, get your friends and then return straight to Coruscant," Elzar finally gave in.

Your eyes soften up by his words. This was the man you had looked up to. Wasting no time, the two of you began to run through the sand dunes, and luckily for you, Elzar did know where Yord and Master Sol where, unlike Qimir. Inside, in a hidden corner of cantina you saw your friends sitting, with their massive hood covering their face, you were still able to recognise their faces. You noticed that Yord was holding in to a necklace, and your heart warmed up when you realized what it was. It was a piece of each other's Kyber crystals. You had given it to each other when the two of you first got your lightsabers. He held on to it for his dear life. They almost looked like they were in some kind of trance as they didn't notice you. The risks they had gone to for you, was beyond what could be asked for. You ran over to them, and before Elzar could stop you, you gave them a massive hug. Suddenly breathing loudly, coming back to their senses, the two men looked up at you like pure stars.

"Y/n," Master Sol said, grabbing your face, relieved to see you weren't hurt from spending time with the monster.

"Shit," Yord shouted.

You noticed Elzar hand on your back, pulling you up. You didn't need to use the force to sense that something was wrong, as everything got cold in the desert land. Like a shadow had found it's new home. You looked behind you, up at Elzar who were looking at the door. The other two men stood up. Elzar clapped you gently on your back.

"We need to go, fast," Elzar said, and this time, you knew better than to argue.

Immediately, all four of you begin to run towards the door, and out the village. You had no idea where they had parked their ship. You only knew that Elzar had one close to the mountains, and that they had another ship closer to the town. At this moment, you wished they had parked it in the middle of the town. You looked over at Yord, and out of desperation, grabbed his hand. You only needed to feel his calm mind. He looked over at you, and it finally sank in that you were here with them, alive.

"We were projecting ourselves, The Stranger... Qimir, he thought he was fighting us, on the other side of-" More couldn't he say, before the darkness stopped in front of you.

"I can not let you go," The Stranger said as he ignited and threw his lightsaber in your direction.