Dance of the Sith

Chapter 3 - Taking It To A New Degree

Author's Note: Thoughts, everyone? :)

~ Amina Gila

The rebels managed to escape Dantooine, but barely. It was supposed to be a blow for the Empire, but from what Ahsoka's heard, it ended up more the opposite. But right now, all she can fixate on is what she sensed. She felt Anakin there. It was him. He's – he's alive, and he was fighting them.

Unlike the brilliant burning star he used to feel of, this was overwhelmingly dark. Like a star that's gone dark but is still burning just as brightly as ever.

It was definitely him, but that doesn't make any sense. She ceased entertaining the thought that he might be alive years ago. It hurt too much to consider, knowing that he probably fell defending the Jedi Temple, covering for all the other Jedi who escaped. Sometimes, that was what made her keep fighting, the knowledge that this is what Anakin died for.

But apparently, he's not dead. He never was. And he's... he's their enemy.

Ahsoka has no idea what to think or feel about that. All this time, she assumed if Anakin were still alive, he'd be fighting right beside her with the Rebellion even if they hadn't met.

Why would he ever Fall, or fight for the Empire, after how they destroyed the Jedi? She doesn't understand. She wishes she could believe that she'd sensed anything but what she did, but trying to lie to herself won't change this. She needs to know what's really going on.

She knows there are some darker parts, cells, to the Rebellion, but that shouldn't be enough to make Anakin fight them, fight her.

The door to the Ghost's cockpit behind her opens, Kanan and Ezra stepping inside. "Hera said you wanted to speak with us?" Kanan asks, sitting down.

"Please, come in." She has to know more, no matter how afraid she is.

"Are you okay?" Ezra inquires, a hint of worry in his eyes.

"I am. Thank you." Not at all, but she doesn't know them that well, and it's not their concern. Either way, she'll be fine. They have a mission to do, something to focus on, and if they're really fighting Anakin, they need to be careful. "I know you've encountered other Inquisitors before, Maul even, but have you ever fought anyone of this strength before?" She certainly hasn't. She never knew he was even out there. She thought Maul was the one leading the Inquisitors. He fought Kanan and Ezra briefly on Lothal when they had to escape the planet, after the Empire cracked down on the constant rebel activity.

Besides, Ezra's not asking about her mental state. He's asking about her, and with how Anakin shoved her back from probing at his mind, the backlash could have hurt. It didn't, because it was Anakin, and he was being... careful.

"No," Kanan confirms, immediately, "I haven't sensed a presence like that since..."

"The Clone Wars," Ahsoka supplies, because that's the last time any of them have fought true Sith, with the exception of Maul, though it was different with him. Something about Maul wasn't as... dark and oppressive in the same way Dooku's presence was, and nothing was as burning and brilliant as Anakin's is now.

She doesn't know how that makes her feel.

"Do you know who or what he is?" Ezra asks, nervously.

Yes. "No. I don't." Ahsoka turns away, staring at the inky blackness of space surrounding them. She'd do that with Anakin sometimes, just watch the stars out a viewport on their cruiser, or when they were on planet, trying – and failing – to fall asleep. How could he be fighting them? "But I do know that he will be coming. They'll all be coming now."