After Jedi

Twilight

Ahsoka walked out of the caves, ducking under the ice at the entrance. She was holding her crystals tightly in her closed palm, viewing the image of her new lightsabers in her mind. Ahsoka's new crystals were a faded white, which was strange since Illum usually only produced green and blue crystals. In her studies at the temple, Ahsoka had learned that those who have white lightsabers are loyal to themselves, to their own cause. She'd never really thought about it too hard, but it made a lot of sense in her situation. Filled with newfound hope, Ahsoka walked out of the cave confidently, with a soft smile on her face.

Ventress looked relieved, but she quickly hid it and said, "Come on."

Ahsoka followed her back to the ship and went to the lounge area to sit on the floor. Sitting up straight, with her legs crossed, Ahsoka envisioned the way her lightsabers would look. Silver, long, curved hilts: one regular-sized, one smaller, like the shoto she'd lost. She felt the rumble of the ship as the engine turned on. Everything jolted a bit as Ventress took off. Ahsoka stood up and made her way into the cockpit. She took one last look at Illum, allowing herself to fall into her memories. She smiled as she recalled the younglings she'd supervised as they'd made their lightsabers. It was hard to imagine so much peace could exist in this wartime.

Ahsoka lowered her gaze, remembering that those younglings would have to fight in the war as well. She sighed, hoping that the Force had a path for them too. She didn't want anyone to have to be forced into a war zone at such a young age the way she was. Ahsoka resolved to work behind the scenes to end the violence. Bounty hunters actually played quite a big part in both the Republic and Separatist senates. With this idea firmly set in mind, Ahsoka sat down next to Ventress and opened her mouth to speak.

"So, I was thinking."

"That's never a good thing." Ahsoka shot an annoyed glance at her and continued,

"You said it yourself, there's violence on both sides."

"Yeah, so what?"

"So what if we work behind the scenes to try and stop it?"

Ventress frowned. "I don't know, Ahsoka. You've seen how much violence there is. Do you really think two bounty hunters like us could stop it?"

"No, no, I know we can't, but I was just thinking that maybe we could just try and help in small ways, you know?"

"Alright, just remember: we don't work for free."

"I'll keep that in mind." Being a former Jedi, Ahsoka had never had much anyway, and that boded well for her in this situation. What little money she could make would be used to buy the bare necessities only.

"Do you keep any scraps of metal? Stuff you don't use but that's still useful?" Ahsoka asked, thinking about her lightsabers.

"Yeah, check the drawers in the rooms. Any of the rooms. I pick up a lot of random items."

"Thanks."

Ventress, having been a bounty hunter for a while, had some contacts she got in touch with as Ahsoka looked through the different drawers, taking anything that looked remotely useful. Once she'd collected everything, she took out one of the empty drawers and put everything in it. Ahsoka returned to the lounge and sat in front of the table next to the couch. She dumped the drawer out and scattered the pieces around her. Ahsoka felt like they needed to be in a circle around her, in order to cut her off from the rest of the world.

Ahsoka closed her eyes and let the Force flow through her. The floating sensation was still hard to get used to. She pictured her lightsaber in her mind again and focused on it as her arms moved with the pieces coming together. Ahsoka opened her eyes and took one of the crystals out of her pocket. All of the scraps floating in front of her looked ready to join with one another. Ahsoka added her crystal into the pile and watched as the pieces assembled before her. It was giving off a white glow, and Ventress later remarked that Ahsoka was as well.

Ahsoka's newly-crafted lightsaber floated towards her. She reached out and admired how it fit in her hand. The curved hilt felt more precise than anything she'd ever handled. It was smooth and beautiful. Ahsoka ignited the blade and waved it around a bit. Thankfully, it didn't explode as her first lightsaber had.

One was done, and Ahsoka was tired. She remembered how excited she'd was when she made her first lightsaber. She had been ready to take on the galaxy, but now, it didn't feel that special. Ahsoka sighed, remembering that she had to make the second one as well. She remained still and silent as she concentrated on creating the second 

Ahsoka heard the whoosh as all the pieces of her next lightsaber swirled around her. Keeping her eyes closed, Ahsoka added the second crystal and listened to the clicking sounds as everything came together.

When she opened her eyes, it was floating before her, an ethereal white light glowing around it. Ahsoka added it to her belt with her other lightsaber. It was curved as well, but smaller, like her old shoto. The white light faded away and suddenly, Ahsoka felt all the heaviness return to her eyes. She knew she wouldn't make it to a room, so she curled up on the couch and slipped into dreams.

I won't leave you! Not this time.

It was the machine from her earlier visions. Ahsoka was standing before him, and part of his helmet had been slashed off. He had one yellow eye, the prominent symbol of having fully turned to the dark side. He was filled with pain and hatred. Tears streamed down Ahsoka's face but she didn't know why. He ignited his red lightsaber.

Then you will die!