𝗙𝗔𝗨𝗟𝗧𝗦 | anakin skywalker

✰ 42: destruction

[some months later.]

"Master, what's going on?"

"Akya, you can't be here right now.  This isn't supposed to be public information. You're shaken.  I understand that.  But—"

"I can obviously see that something happened to the Temple, Master.  I'm worried.  Just tell me what's wrong.  How did this happen?"

"We don't know, Akya.  But this could have been an inside job."

"What?"

Akya had been meditating in the gardens when she heard a low, loud boom come from somewhere very close.  The ground shook and she felt a large disturbance in the Force, causing her to stumble up.  Voices cried out in pain and she felt a heavy loss in her heart.  Nothing good was going on, and it made her feel horrible. After that, she'd run to her master, who was on his was to an emergency Council meeting.

"You mean a Jedi could have done this?" she said, her eyes wide with fear.  A Jedi?  How?  Who? Why?

Obi-Wan nodded solemnly.  "That's what I suspect.  Whoever it was is no longer on our side. The Council needs to decide what to do, because no one is away from suspicion."  He put his hand on his Padawan's shoulder.  "Was anyone with you in the gardens?"

Akya thought about it, stuttering.  "I— uh— yes, yes," she said.  "Two Initiates. And, um, the gardener."

"Good," he said.  "I'm going to propose they call Anakin and Ahsoka to do the investigation, since they're away on Cato Nemoidia, and therefore away from suspicion. I suggest you go see those two initiates. Make sure they're alright. Help them clear their minds. It might help you, too."

"Yes, Master."  She nodded. 

"I'll come and get you with any updates."

"Thank you."

— ★ ✰ ☆ —

"The Force flows through everything. People, animals, plants, every living thing plays its part in the balance." Akya patted the dirt from one of the pots that had fallen over back down, making sure the fern was snug. The two Initiates and Akya helped the gardener put anything that had fallen back up to how it had been. The gardens weren't too far from the part of the temple where the blast had happened, and the aftermath had shaken everything, causing a bit of a mess in the usually well-kept meditation gardens.

"Even the dark side?" asked one of the Initiates, Karina.

"The dark and the light are both a part of balance," Akya explained. "But the dark, the Sith, often want to shake the balance, because they want all the power.  The Jedi are keepers of peace."

"Then why is there all this war, Master?" asked the younger of the two.  "Why hasn't balance come back yet?"

"When the darkness wages war, we must bring light to meet it," Akya said, remembering something her master had told her once.

"Akya?" called a voice from the doorway to the garden.  Akya looked over to find Anakin waiting there, hands behind his back as he's leaned against the side of the doorway.  He looked happy to see her, but he wasn't smiling.  He knew this wasn't the time.

"If you'll excuse me, young ones," she said, getting up and nodding to them.

"Yes, Master," said Karina.  The younger initiate nodded back. 

Akya left the garden and followed Anakin outside, in a secluded area by the end of the hall.  "Hi," she said to him.

"Come here," he said, putting his arms around her back.  He pulled her in close and allowed her head to rest on his chest as she put her hands around his waist.  They stayed in this position for a couple moments before coming apart. 

"Did you feel it?" she asked, looking up into his eyes.

He nodded solemnly. "Like a million voices crying out in pain."

"I was so close," she said. "It hurt me. Physically. You know, sometimes..." She looked down. "Sometimes the Force... well, it's not the greatest feeling in the world." She looked back up at him.

"I can understand that," he said.

"You're here to investigate?"

Her husband nodded. "Ahsoka and one of the crime scene investigation droids are questioning witnesses as we speak. I have to make my way over there soon. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"Well, I am."

"Good," he said. He put his hands on his shoulders and gave her a short peck on the lips. "I love you."

Akya smiled. "I love you, too."

— ★ ✰ ☆ —

Akya didn't like this.  She didn't like it one bit.  She didn't like having to go out on a mission while an investigation was still going on at the temple.  She and Obi-Wan had been ruled out as suspects, as well as multiple other people that had been nearby.  Obi-Wan didn't have any updates yet, as the Council wasn't supposed to meet again for a couple hours, in hopes of giving Anakin and his Padawan time to come up with some theories. 

Akya wanted to be there, helping people, perhaps even assisting with the investigation.  But she had another job to do, and that was the end of it.  Obi-Wan knew of her worries, but he assured her that nothing was going to happen, and that the truth would reveal itself in due time.

"Something is off about all this, Master," she said.  "I can feel it.  Something's going to happen.  Something bad."

"You're letting your anxiety cloud your judgement, Akya," he said, a hand on her shoulder.  "Take a moment to yourself.  It should be a little while before we reach our destination."

"And what do you propose I do?"

"Meditate," Obi-Wan shrugged.  "Check in with the Force.  See through your worries, and you will find that nothing sinister is going on other than the obvious."

"I'm just worried about Anakin and Ahsoka.  Whoever bombed the Temple... if they're willing to go that far, what will they do to them?"

"I trust they will be alright.  I don't think Anakin can be put down by a simple bomb, if I'm being quite honest."

a.n.:

it has begun!!

this is the one real clone wars arc that akya is getting incorporated to in writing-- there's a lot more i wanted to do, like when satine dies on mandalore and the rako hardeen arc, but i also had my own ideas and the clone wars section of this book was getting a little long. so i decided to go with this one, because it's one of the more important ones to my story.

i hope you liked this chapter! don't forget to vote :)

molly