The Unchronicled Adventures Of Ahsoka Tano, Book Ten

Chapter Fifty-One: Geyser Ridge

KAYA TI AREEKO

The blood was rushing in Kaya's ears. It roared and churned in her veins, and made her forehead feel too hot against the cool of the midday air.

And almost like in her vision, for some reason, she felt like she couldn't breathe. She knew air was passing through her lungs – she could feel her chest rising and falling –, but even so, it somehow left her perpetually gasping for breath in a reflex that was more emotional than physical.

Along with the metaphysical lack of air, her heartbeat suddenly felt too loud, too frantic; as if it were beating out accompaniment to a piece Kaya remembered just enough to know it was missing all the intervals. It was a fitting reflection of what she knew was to come.

Belatedly, she realized what she was feeling was fear. Absolute, unforgiving, and utterly uncontrollable fear. Fear for herself; fear for Ahsoka... fear of the future.

She was not afraid of dying. The time when she had been had long since passed. The only thing that worried her was how much her death was bound to hurt the people she cared about. They needed to be as far away from her as possible, both mentally and physically, when destiny came to meet her.

And, as a quick glance to her wrist chrono informed her, that would be sooner rather than later – though exactly how the events she had foreseen would twist together in the end continued to elude her. All she knew was that noon was fast approaching, and Geyser Ridge grew closer with each step she took.

Slowing her stride across the ashy grey ground, she turned back towards Ahsoka – the embodiment of all she hoped to protect. If Ahsoka died, hope for the Rebellion, and likely the New Jedi Order as well, would die with her. She was supporting so many people, and if she collapsed without warning out from under them, terrible things were sure to follow.

Kaya Ti couldn't let that happen. She would not allow her visions of Ahsoka's death to become reality.

They were only a few minutes away from Geyser Ridge now. Kaya could see it through the breaks in the ash-covered rock formations along either side of the narrow path they were taking. And as a plume of ash and smoke suddenly shot up into the air, she was suddenly reminded of how the place had been given its name.

Geyser Ridge was the only accessible part of the cliff overlooking one of the enormous canyons that extended all the way down to the magma flows of Valunn's upper mantle. The frequent bursts of volcanic debris from the chasm and faint red glow from dozens of kilometers down were a chilling reminder of just how unstable the planet really was.

The cliff had gained a reputation as a popular spot for suicides, and then later for business deals between those hoping to avoid the scrutiny of the authorities. Kaya found it ironic how what had once been a meeting place where she and the Pykes had exchanged wares was to be the place where they expected to kill her.

She focused on her purpose at her Master's side, putting all her energy into controlling her fear; using it to sharpen her mind and strengthen her resolve. But even so, the words boiled to the surface before she could stop them, and her hand flew to Ahsoka's shoulder before she could start down the rocky path onto the Ridge in earnest. "I can't let you go out there."

"What? Why?"

"The Pykes are just beyond that outcropping. Don't you sense them?" Kaya crouched down, pointing towards a flash of metal armor that gleamed against the grey of the rocks. "I had a vision about this, okay? And it didn't end well for you."