The Balance and The Force {Star Wars Ep. X}

s. XVI

The three of them had been gone for a week. They had been going across the Galaxy looking for children, teens, and adults who were force sensitive. They were picking up those who were already signed up and finding others.

The week had been long for Anni. She spent most of her time with the children, since they seemed to take a liking to her. Anni helped the kids get on the ship. By the time the trip was over they had 4 children, 4 teens, and 8 adults. It was a small amount but it was enough to train and start out with.

Once they landed on the resistance base again people were waiting in a pile. Ben and Rey walked out first with Anni as the others came off. Parents held their children and they all seemed scared. They were quick to learn that the resistance was very quick to welcome new people willing to fight.

Once Anni landed on the planet her head started spinning all of a sudden. She ran a hand through her hair which was down now. She closed her eyes for a second before turning and going into the crowd. She passed by Ryder who called out to her but she had to get to her room.

The next thing she knew was that she was at her room in the bathroom and puking her guts out.

She winced as she put her head up and leaned back against the counter. She turned around to see Ryder standing at the door.

He cleared his throat as he got on his knees to help wipe off her face. "Did you catch an illness?" Ryder asked her and gently helped her pull her hair back.

"I-I don't know... I've never been this sick before. I stepped off the ship and my head started spinning..." Anni shrugged and went to stand up. Ryder helped her back into the bedroom. Once they got in there Ryder turned to see Ben was standing at the door frame.

Ben was watching carefully with his hands on his hips. He sighed and shook his head. "She was vomiting?"

"Yes, sir." Ryder said nervously and helped Anni into her bed.

"Can I talk to you in the hall, Tate." He asked Ryder. Tate was Ryder's last name.

Ryder pressed a kiss to Anni's forehead before walking out of the room with Ben. He gently closed the door and turned to look at Ben but he was taken by surprise. Ben grabbed onto Ryder's shirt and pushing him up against the wall.

"What did you do to her?" Ben asked threateningly. "I could tell the whole trip she was hiding something."

"Wh-what do you mean, sir?" Ryder asked nervously. Ben pressed him against the wall harder.

"Did you have sex with my daughter?" Ben asked him. He was infuriated.

"Sir, with all do respect, we are dating. She let me." Ryder said, trying to defend himself.

"If she is pregnant, I will not be happy with you. She's only 18 years old, Ryder." Ben growled before letting him go. "She's got a lot ahead of her, and she doesn't need to be worrying about some cocky resistance pilot."

"I am not cocky!" Ryder said back. "And she and I have a connection! I just want her to be happy!"

"She's going through a lot, and she can't be distracted. Her job is to bring back her brother and she can't do that right if she's pregnant with your child. You two are young and don't know how dangerous this can be!" Ben said and shook his head. He rubbed his forehead before turning around. He let his shoulders fall.

"Sir, I understand. You've never been able to spend much time with her. But, I promise you if she's pregnant you won't lose her." Ryder told him.

"Ryder Tate, I am not worried about losing my daughter. I'm worried about her not knowing how to parent. I'm worried about that baby because of its blood. Unless Kai and Anni keep the peace that baby will battle with the dark and light just as our whole family has. Now isn't the time for you to be screwing around. Watch yourself, Ryder. I won't hesitate." Ben growled at him. "Leave now, I need to talk to my daughter."

Inside, Anni was awake and sitting on her bed. She was staring up at her brother.

"You're pregnant, Anni. I can feel it through the force like a wave." Kai told her and looked down at her. "So, it is true... You've been mingling with the filthy resistance members."

"Hey!" Anni yelled at him. "You don't know anything that I've been doing."

"I have heard about the new Jedi order... It's pathetic. You've been telling me you don't want to be a jedi-"

Anni cut Kai off. "No... You're pathetic. If you would have just given our parents a chance you would know what's actually going on! These people won't be Jedi." Anni told him. "They're gonna keep the peace."

"You know we're the only ones that can do that. Your parents are just trying to make up for the imbalance." Kai said to her. "Which is why you have to join me..."

"If you'd just listen to me for onc-" Anni was cut off when Ben opened the door. Anni looked over at the door before looking back to where Kai was standing. Kai was gone.

"Ryder went off to fix his ship... And I need to talk to you." Ben told her before walking to her bed. Ben sat next to Anni and she turned to him.

"Do you-" Ben started but he shook his head. He was afraid to do this. His hands were shaking and he quickly pushed his hands down into the bed. "Do you ever think everything is happening too... Too fast? There's so much going on and I don't want you to feel overworked."

"Is this about Ryder? I wondered why you wanted to see him." Anni said quietly before looking down at her hands.

"I don't want you to be distracted." Ben said and sighed. "but I also want you to talk to me." He reached over and grabbed her hands. "Anni, you're my daughter. Even though I wasn't physically there for years I was always there. I was always making sure you fixed those droids right and I was always making sure you were being guided in the right direction. You can tell me anything."

Anni looked at Ben before looking down. "When I was captured, Alec was... Very close to me. He had told me he wanted me to have his children. He hurt me... Often. He never touched me like Ryder has though..." Anni shook her head, as if she was trying to shake off certain thoughts. "When I came back I was afraid to start training as a Jedi again. I had a taste of the dark side and now I see it all now... But there's so much I've learned and yet there's more I don't know." She looked back up at her father who seemed to be very upset.

"People on the dark side like to manipulate people into doing their bidding. Alec wanted to use you against me. You killed him though, and I'm proud you killed your abuser like I did." Ben squeezed her hands. "I'm not happy about what you did with Ryder, but I understand." He told her. "I understand you must have missed him so much. I know when I saw your mom again I coul-"

"Don't." Anni told him and laughed. "I don't need to know about it." She chuckled and looked into her father's eyes. "I love you."

"I love you too, An." She replied.

Later on in the day Anni, Ben and Rey were helping to train the group. Anni of course was left with all the teenagers.

She sat in the meditation circle and looked around at the group. They were all watching her with worried eyes.

"You're all very brave to have come here, and I've heard stories about what the Order has done to you and your families." She looked down at her feet and sighed. "My mission is to bring back my brother to the light, but your mission is to learn the force like it's your native language. Learn the force like it's more than just a power to utilize. It's a gift to use it as you can. It moves through everything and everyone. Even those who aren't sensitive." Anni said and sat down on the ground. "Today we will meditate. Don't worry if you can't lift your rocks yet. It's just the start of what's coming. Just focus on feeling the energy around you."

Anni watched as they all closed their eyes.

"See it," Anni started and smiled. "See how the force itself is not the dark and light... See how it's the individual who chooses what they do with the force. The force does not choose what you do." Anni then pressed a hand against her stomach.

She then turned and watched as rocks started to float. "Yes... Focus your energy on it. See it floating. Don't think of it as being hard. Think of it as second nature."

Anni saw her mother coming over to the group. She smiled at her before looking around at teenagers.

Somehow, Anni felt like this was her purpose. Like she was fulfilling something in her that she didn't know she had.