The Weaving Force: Chapter 144

Chapter 144:

“Hey, Miss Taylor, are you alright?”

I came to with a jolt, almost startled before I opened my eyes and recognized the person shaking me awake.

“Guelzo?” I mumbled, the inside of my mouth felt like it was stuffed with cotton balls and my head was killing me.

As I sat up, my clone XO  kept his hand on my shoulder. “Never known you to take a nap, Miss Taylor. You really must’ve been tired.”

I stared at him, then looked around the room we were in. “This is… the Resolute?”

I didn’t mean for it to come out as a question, but it did, and I saw Guelzo raise a concerned eyebrow. “You feeling alright ma’am? Should I call Pratchett?”

I shook my head, both to answer his question and to try and clear the cobwebs.

That… hadn’t been a dream had it?

Tentatively, I reached for the connection between myself and the Queen administrator, and it pulsed with something akin to the strength of a living beating heart. A true connection, her consciousness brushing mine, assuring me that- no; It hadn’t been a dream.

I stood up, my legs feeling as sturdy as noodles, but still holding firm. “Where is Anakin?” I asked.

Guelzo still looked worried. “Last I heard he was in his chambers, Ma’am.”

I spread my senses outward, feeling the echoes of the force almost map out the ship and every living thing within it in its entirety- the awareness heightened by my innate control over insects making me aware of everything within the resolute in an instant.

Sure enough Anakin was in his chambers, specifically the meditation chamber right next to his bedroom.

I turned, beginning to walk away- “Ma’am?” Guelzo called after me, clearly worried. 

I waved him off. “I’m fine there was just a… disturbance in the Force.” It wasn’t technically a lie.

By the bunching of his eyebrows I could tell he didn’t totally buy it; regardless he nodded. “Should I get Noble ready for you ma’am?”

I shook my head. “No. As you were.” I answered before turning and walking away.

As I walked through the Venator, I saw with my own eyes, and listened through thousands of ears, how the clones around me were acting.

In short, normal.

They acted completely and totally normal, as if nothing at all was amiss; like they hadn’t been completely knocked out en masse just… hours? Days?- ago.

There was nothing even in their thoughts, no memory of anything having gone awry at all.

It set the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end and I hurried my steps to reach Anakin 

When I made it to the hallway just before his door, I felt the touch of his mind against my own, the equivalent of a hand on my proverbial shoulder.

I opened the door.

Anakin’s room was cold, the bed was made, like he hadn’t slept in it at all. 

Making my way towards the meditation chamber, that door was open, so it was easy to see him already kneeling at the center of the room, his body a living conduit for Force energy. 

I asked the first thing that came to mind. “I didn’t dream the whole thing did I?”

Anakin shook his head. “Not unless we both had a very strange and vivid dream.” He answered before looking towards the chrono to his left. 

I looked too. I saw the date and time stamp.

“We’re on schedule.” He said. “Not a log out of place or anything amiss at all…” He offered a shrug. “Like it never happened at all.”

“We know it did happen though.” I answered. I wasn’t the only one who was changed. 

He nodded. “Aye. We do.” Looking up from his kneeling position, he met my eyes. “Will you tell the Council?”

That made me raise an eyebrow. “You are the Council.”

His answering laugh was a surprised bark, as he threw his head back. A full on belly laugh that made him shake where he sat. 

“Thanks-” He breathed after a moment, his laugher subsiding. “But you know what I mean.”

I shrugged, almost helplessly really. “I’m not even sure where to begin. I figured you’d be the first to tell them. And if not, why keep it a secret?”

The last of his mirth faded, a sigh escaping him. “I… don’t think people are meant to know about that place. At all. Too much power. Too much… temptation.”

I could understand that. But still- “Not even Yoda?”

Anakin’s features scrunched up, and I could feel the indecision warring within him. 

I shook my head. “Regardless of what you choose-” I hesitated, just for a moment. I wasn’t used to saying it much. 

But I did say it. “Thank you. For helping me.”

His answer was a smile. 

“Little brothers occasionally have to be useful.” He shrugged. “Helps break up long stretches of just being annoying.”

I hadn’t realized he felt that way before. I was touched, and I realized, somewhere along the way perhaps he had become just that, both to me and Victoria. 

I was never very good at telling people how I felt. That hadn’t changed, even with all these years. Instead, I let the Force speak for me, the touch of my mind against his, gratitude, and yes, love, expressed therein in a way words would have been too difficult to convey. 

“May I join you?” I asked, gesturing towards the center of the meditation chamber beside him. 

Anakin scooted back to make some room.

It was answer enough.

—

It was as Anakin said. We returned to Coruscant without a single minute of delay in our flight. For all pragmatic intents and purposes… it was like the events on that strange world with the shards and the three Force wielders, never happened at all. 

It was night by the time we arrived, the billions of glimmering lights of the Coruscanti night life greeting us as we reached high orbit, the system’s sun on the far side of the planet almost looked like it was eclipsed by an orb of sparkles. 

As we descended, I spread my senses as far as they would go through the currents and eddies of the Force.

It made me sick.

The planet was steeped in the Dark Side. It was marinating in it. Not obvious like Dathomir, but something far more insidious, covered up, masked by the teeming heaving mass of life. The constant rush of movement. Like someone using heavy makeup to cover up the horrid scars and blemishes. 

It wasn’t just Sidious. It was everything. The Republic, its corruption and decadence, its complacency and exploitation. The people of Coruscant and their despondency, their apathy.

And the Temple stood alone. An island amidst a sea of blackness and deceit. And even it wasn’t without its own flaws and scars.

The war had scarred it. The feelings and emotions of all those Jedi hurt by the conflict, all of their pain, fear and uncertainty… It had left its mark.

I didn’t know if it could be fixed. If, after everything was said and done if there was anything we could feasibly do.

A part of me wasn’t even sure we should even try.

As we made our final descent down to the temple below, the physical image was a mirror reflection of what I could see in the Force. The surrounding grounds were swathed in darkness, where Clones patrolled the perimeters, gerd manned their stations, while the temple itself was illuminated by bright pillars of light. Its outer marble and gold walls shining like a lighthouse on a hill, even as the world around it became ever more deadly and dangerous.

We made our communiques, passed the final checks and descended down to the temple below.

It was late, ans so, it wasn’t a surprise to see that the Council hadn’t come to see us. I imagine all of them were getting too little sleep as it was.

But I was relieved, like a weight had been pulled off of my chest and I could breathe again, when I saw Vicky waiting for me there, alongside Obi-Wan, Iskt and Karla.

I could sense her feelings, the anxiety, the nervousness. She was still upset, about Zygerria. For me, after the events on that station, it felt so far away, but I remembered for her, it must’ve seemed less than a day or two ago. 

“Master!” Karla smiled at me marching forward to offer the wriggling and squeaking Angelica who latched onto my chest with a contented squee.

I smiled back, at both of them.  My hands rising to offer a gentle scratch at the top of the mushroom’s back and a pat on the head to the still small Padawan. 

“I’m glad you’re back.” Iskt said.

“Glad to be back.” I answered, offering a nod to Obi-Wan to nodded back before approaching Anakin.

Distantly, I heard it when Anakin bowed and greeted his old Master, but my eyes turned to Vicky, who watched me with a troubled knit to her brow and a frown that told me she was trying to find a way to broach the conversation. 

How was I even gonna broach the conversation? How could I even begin to explain what I now knew.

That Scion was alive in some capacity. That Administrator, the shards and so many other beings were brought here as a way to eliminate them from the ‘network’ to preserve the greater whole? The whole thing, even thinking about it just felt like it was unmooring me all over again.

And what do I leave out? Anakin hadn’t decided on what to divulge about the strange place to the Council, and his concerns were entirely valid. Could I just go over his head and tell her everything? Would the Fragile One tell her on its own time regardless?

And all of this, with the threat of Sidious still hanging over our heads and everything that still needed to get done. 

Vicky sighed. “Tay. About Zygerri-”

I stepped forward, and right here, infront of everyone, pulled her close, hugging her tightly; Angelica squirmed between us, pleased as can be, while Obi-Wan averted his eyes and pretended not to see, Anakin doing the same.

“... Tay?” Her voice was laced with a palpable concern, even as her arms came up to coil around me too.

I breathed. “There’s… so much to explain, Vicky. I don’t even know where to begin.”

Vicky’s fingers dug tighter into my back, her hair tickling my chin as I felt her sigh. 

“One thing at a time.” She whispered back. “We talk… and take it on one thing at a time.”

I nodded the top of her head against my lips. “You and me against the world right?” I whispered.

She didn't hesitate in her answer. Not for a single instant.

“Always.”

(X)(X)(X)

This one was far shorter than I thought it would be; but generally speaking all of the pieces are in place on the good guys side, everything is pretty much ready to go.

So, next chapter is an Interlude. I'll give you all two guesses on who's POV it is but you're only gonna need one :3

Might be short, might be long; we'll see how it goes. But after that- that's it- We'll be kicking off the big final showdown

Its been a long time coming but all this groundwork is important I promise.

I'll see you all, next week :)