Memories of the Past

Chapter 18

He was standing in the middle of a mist, covering his eyes and ears. Bits and pieces of different events were shown in the mist. Each depicted a scene of Anakin committing a horrible deed: killing younglings, strangling Padme with the force, a Sith Lord with Anakin at his side, and the mechanical mask I have been seeing in my dreams.

He had, at this point, fallen to his knees and was yelling "noooooooo!" A dark figure approached him. "Will I really do such terrible things?" He asked, destraught by the future just shown to him.

The scene shifted to a small fire in the middle of darkness. "I warned you about his fate, all those years ago in the cave. You didn't believe me. Aren't you glad you quit before the war ended?" whispered a voice resembling my own.

A planet exploded. A teenage boy dueled Vader. The same teenage boy was frozen to the ceiling of a Wampa's shelter. An X-Wing starfighter sunk to the bottom of a swamp. A man was carbon frozen. The teenage boy faught a Rancor. There was a battle between Ewoks and Imperial troopers. The Emperor was thrown into a shaft and killed by Vader. Vader's helmet was removed, and he died.

I woke with a start. Images of pain and suffering clouded my thoughts. This Sith Lord is Anakin Skywalker. I couldn't sense the presence of my master because it had been completely consumed by the dark side.

I was propped up against the back wall of the cockpit. Hera was sitting in her usual pilot's seat. I stood up and walked over to her.

"Hera, I know who it is. I have seen it all."

"Who is it, then?"

"Darth Vader, former Jedi Knight. He was known as Anakin Skywalker during the clone wars."

I could not keep in the tears that streaked down my face. It was too much of a shock to me that my master was now one of the most evil beings in the galaxy.

Hera gave me a hug. "Hey, it'll be okay. We'll get him eventually," she assured me.

"It's not that," I wailed, sobbing at this point. "Anakin and I were very close during the clone wars. He was my master. I was his Padawan."

"I have been told by Kanan that the bond between master and apprentice is stronger than any other bond. I'm so sorry, Ahsoka."

I sighed and wiped my eyes. "I need to speak with Kanan and Ezra about the Sith Lord they faced on Lothal. I need to figure out how strong he is. If I can face Vader," I said, choking out "Vader", "I can start the downfall of the Empire right now. It would save countless lives."

"Very well," she responded. "They'll both be in here, sooner or later. There are some tissues in the bottom drawer," she said, pointing to it.

"Thanks. Oh, and please don't repeat what I've told you to anyone. This way, we can assure that the rest of the alliance does what it believes to be right, not what is emotionally good for me."

"Of course."

I was left sitting in the copilot's chair staring out into space as Hera walked out to the commons area.