Ascendance

XXIII

The fire lit my path as I picked my way through the forest, my eyes captured in its glow. A soft breeze fluttered through the trees, blowing my long hair around me, and in that moment, the fire went out.

I was cloaked in darkness for a heartbeat, instinctively drawing my lightsaber to replace the light.

I was standing in a clearing, nothing significant about it. I moved my lightsaber around me to examine my surroundings, then drew in a sharp breath.

A cloaked figure stood opposite me. Watching me.

I held my lightsaber out defensively. "Who are you?"

"I've waited a long time to meet you, Young Solo."

"That's not an answer." I cast a quick glance around. We were alone.

"Don't be afraid." The figure lowered its hood to reveal a horribly misshapen face. Skin laced with ragged scars, one eye missing, horrible gnarled teeth.

I lowered my gaze almost instinctively, my stomach lurching. "I'll ask again: Who are you?"

"Does my appearance disturb you?"

I kept my eyes on the ground. "No."

"Your father was never very good at lying, either."

"Tell me who you are!" I snapped, fidgeting.

"Rylie." His voice changed.

My head snapped up, eyes widening as I took in the familiar face.

"Perhaps this face is more welcoming to you." Anakin took a step towards me, extending a hand.

I shook my head and stepped back. He stopped his advance.

This isn't Anakin, I reminded myself.

"Perhaps this one?" I watched in horror as his facial features twisted and transformed into the face of my father.

"Or this one?" I couldn't tear my eyes away as my father's face melted into Rey's, her stare hard. As I watched, it began to change again. I looked away.

"Stop it." I gritted my jaw. "You're just trying to scare me."

"Scare you?" Obi-Wan's expression was one of concern.

"Did you bring me here to show me some magic tricks?" I glared back.

Obi-Wan smiled menacingly, his face illuminated by the green glow of my lightsaber. "No."

"Then what?"

"I've come to help you."

"Ah, yes." I gestured to his face. "So far you've been very helpful."

"Your father is suffering."

My guise of sarcasm shattered then, leaving me feel as if I'd been punched in the stomach. When I spoke, my voice was weak. "What do you know about that?"

"You saved his life, but at the same time ruined it." Obi-Wan stepped closer. I watched him, feeling rooted to the spot.

"Do you know what happened? What I did? How I did it?" My eyes widened. "No one has been able to tell me."

"Yes." He was standing in front of me now, eyes searching my face.

"Tell me," I begged.

He cocked his head slightly, then, and began to slowly circle around me. "The power to bring back the dead is a power reserved for the Sith. It aligns with our belief system, not that of the Jedi."

"But, I—"

"On that day at the First Order base you brought your father back from death."

"I'm not a Sith."

"Nor are you a Jedi."

"Not yet."

He hummed thoughtfully, his eyes scraping over me.

I let out an irritated noise. "How did I do it? Was it Rey?"

He shook his head slowly, smiling softly. "No, it was you."

"But how?"

He seemed to think it over.

"Please. I—I have to know." I stepped towards him, this time, and he watched the movement with interest.

With a flick of his hand, we were surrounded by fire. It reached high into the night sky, illuminating our surroundings.

"Sheathe your weapon." He glanced at my lightsaber.

After a brief hesitation, I obeyed, clipping it cautiously to my belt, but maintained a distance between us just in case.

"The action of reviving the dead requires a sacrifice of one life to save another." His eyes bored into mine. "That is the laws of the universe, the laws of the Force."

"But—" I frowned, thinking. "Hadn't my father done it before? With my mother?"

The figure shook its head. "Your mother wasn't dead. He brought her back just in time, before her life had entirely left her body."

"Then how did I manage to do it without dying?" My head swam with confusion. "This doesn't make sense."

"You summoned the energies of others through the Force, using yourself as a conduit, thereby saving just enough of your own energy to save yourself."

"How? How did I do that?"

He looked me over. "Aren't you curious about your father?"

"Well, yes." I wrapped my cloak around me.

The figure turned away from me, then. "I've grown tired of this visage."

"Pick another, then." My foot tapped with impatience.

When the figure turned, I was looking into my own face. I jumped at the image, feeling somehow violated.

My face smiled menacingly back at me, and I looked away, uncomfortable.

"Your father's condition will worsen, over time." It was surreal to hear my own voice speak these words.

"Is—is there anything I can do to fix it?" I forced myself to stare into my own eyes.

"When you summoned the energy from others, you transferred it in the form of electricity." I glanced away again as the figure with my face spoke, the light of the flames that surrounded us reflecting in its dark eyes. "In doing so you saved your father's life, but short-circuited his nervous system. You gave him back his life but damaged his vitals, guaranteeing that the rest of his days would in turn be a slow, painful death."