Fighting Back (Sequel to Savior)

Chapter 5

A barren valley made of rock and dead soil surrounded him on both sides, with statues of robed figured decorating the walls and ground above the valley. The area, while dry and dead-looking, was brimming with untapped Force energy. The valley was desolate, except for a lone, robed figure that stood motionless far in front of him.

"Your identity, I wish to know." Yoda called out, taking a step forward. The figure didn't move.

"You know her, Master Yoda." A voice said softly, echoing around him. Yoda looked around, startled, trying to find the origin of the disembodied voice.

"Where is this place? Familiar with it, I am not." Yoda asked, still searching for the voice.

"This valley was once home to a senseless act of death and destruction at the hands of the Sith. Many Jedi and Sith lost their lives here." the voice responded.

"Senseless? You and your Army of Light deserved everything it got and more." Another voice, much deeper and malevolent than the first, snarled.

"Answered my questions, you have not. Given me half-truths and riddles, you have." Yoda stated, a frown on his face.

"Sound like someone you know?" The lighter voice responded jovially. Yoda's frown didn't change. The voice audibly sighed, and said, "This is the Valley of the Jedi."

"The Valley of the Jedi?" Yoda repeated, racking his mind to figure out the name sounded so familiar, "A legend among the Jedi, it is, but know, older Jedi do, of the truth behind the legend. This valley, scene it was, to the defeat of Skere Kaan, and the sacrifice of Lord Hoth."

"Yes, the very same." the voice affirmed.

"But that is neither here or there. You will find out the truth behind this tale soon enough." the sinister voice said ominously.

"Explain, you will." Yoda insisted.

"See you soon, my little green friend." Yoda felt the voices leave his presence.

The motionless figure that stood in the distance turned to face him. The figure shook the robe off, revealing their identity. Shocked, Yoda took a step back.

"Yoda." Fay whispered. Suddenly, Yoda was thrown back by an invisible force, and the world around him circled and blurred.

Gasping, Yoda awoke from his meditation. He reached a clawed hand to his head; a headache was forming.

"Master Yoda, are you okay?" Mace inquired, gazing at the older Jedi with worry.

Taking a minute to catch his breath, Yoda rose from the meditation chair and gathered his gimer stick, "Lead me on a mission, the Force does. Reunite with an old friend, I must."

"Master Yoda, where are you going? Who are you meeting? Master Yoda?" Mace asked, rising from his own seat.

"My path, revealed by the Force, it will be." Yoda muttered, and exited the room, leaving Mace alone.

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The campfire illuminated the dark landscape with the melodic chirps of the insects and crashing of the waterfalls filled the air, giving off a peaceful vibe. Even in the dead of night, Naboo was peaceful and alive. Ahsoka knew why Anakin loved it here, and why Padme loved her homeworld so much.

She poked the fire with a stick, making it crackle. The others were still unconscious from the crash landing, and Ahsoka had offered to take watch for Obi-Wan so he was currently resting.

A groan sounded from Aayla as the blue Twi-lek sat up, setting her eyes on Ahsoka.

"Ahsoka," she said slowly, her accent shining through, "I guess the landing was smooth?"

She cracked a smile, "As smooth as one of Anakin's landings could be."

Aayla smiled and changed positions, sitting crossed legged facing the fire and opposite of Ahsoka.

"The others haven't woken up?" the woman asked, glancing at Kit, Anakin, Obi-Wan, then Plo.

"Obi-Wan was conscious when the ship crashed, but he's resting now. The others are still unconscious." she responded, "I don't sense any life-threatening injuries, but I'm sure a bath in bacta wouldn't hurt."

A comfortable silence fell upon them as the two stared at the fire. After a while, Aayla broke the silence.

"You saw a vision of the future, right? Ten years ago?" she asked.

Ahsoka looked up at her, brows furrowing slightly. She nodded, "Yes, I did."

"Can you..." she paused for a moment, hesitant to complete her sentence, "Can you tell me what happened to me? To Kit?"

With her mouth pressed into a thin line, Ahsoka asked, "Are you sure?"

Aayla nodded, eyes determined.

Sighing, Ahsoka obliged, "Kit was murdered by Sidious in an attempt to arrest him."

Aayla's eyes widened in horror. Ahsoka waited a minute, letting the unsettling information sink in. After a minute, she continued, "You were killed by your own clone troopers who were forced to betray their Jedi generals."

Aayla's mouth trembled slightly as she covered her mouth with her hand to prevent her cries from ringing throughout the countryside.

"I'm sorry." Ahsoka said meekly, knowing that nothing she said or did would comfort the woman. Aayla shook her head, her lekkus bouncing. She wiped away the few stray tears that had fallen, and responded, "It's fine. Thank you for telling me."

Ahsoka nodded ever so slightly, returning her eyes to the dancing flames in front of her. She knew the burden of knowing what the future held all too well.

Neither of the women talked for the rest of the night, and eventually, Aayla had gone to sleep. Morning came, and one by one, each of them awoke, and were now sitting around the campfire.

"Thank the Force all of us made it out of that relatively unharmed." Kit muttered, binding his tentacles together so that they didn't move around, "Without a ship, it's gonna be harder to rendezvous with the Rebels."

 "The coordinates were lost with the ship." Obi-Wan frowned, stroking his beard.

"Skywalker, you know Ms. Amidala. Would you have any inkling as to where she would set up base?" Plo asked through his mask, turning to face the young man.

"Hmm," Anakin hummed, his face contorting in thought, "She might set up camp at Varykino."

"Varykino?" Ahsoka asked.

Anakin nodded, "It's the Naberrie family home. It's located on the lake of the same name." Anakin gazed around at the surrounding waterfalls and landscape, "It isn't too far from here, if I'm not mistaken."

"You seem to know a lot about this Varykino." Obi-Wan stated, crossing his arms and looking at Anakin expectingly.

"It's where I took Padme before the start of the Clone Wars." Anakin answered, smiling nervously.

Obi-Wan hummed, as if he didn't totally believe the man, but he let it slide anyway.

"Well, if Anakin knows where this Varykino is, then let's not waste anymore time." Aayla announced, standing up.

"I concur." Ahsoka followed, "Alright then. I doubt there's anything salvageable from the ship, so let's get this show on a roll!"

With Anakin leading, the Jedi taskforce were on there way to meet the Padme and the Rebels on Naboo.