Chapter Text
The survey mission was routine, which should have been the first warning. Routine missions had a habit of becoming memorable. Usually in unpleasant ways.
The shuttle descended through the atmosphere of a barren moon and jagged mountains stretched toward a darkening sky, their homebase, Horizon orbiting nearby.
Ancient stone.
Ancient silence.
Ani sat in the pilot's seat as Cal Kestis occupied the co-pilot position. The young Jedi looked considerably healthier than he had five years earlier.
Less haunted.
More grounded.
Hope did that.
"Tell me again why we're here," asked Ani.
Cal glanced at the survey data.
"Jedi ruins."
Ani nodded. "Right," he paused. "That still sounds like the beginning of a terrible idea."
Cal laughed thinking some things about Jedi never changed.
The shuttle landed.
The ramp lowered.
The two men stepped onto the surface.
Silence greeted them.
Hours passed.
Scans.
Surveys.
Measurements.
Nothing unusual.
Nothing dangerous.
Then Cal stopped walking and almost immediately the young Jedi's expression changed. Gone was the easy smile, the relaxed confidence. Only alarm remained.
Ani noticed instantly.
"Cal?"
The Jedi turned slowly.
His face had gone pale. "Something's here."
The words barely escaped.
Ani felt it a moment later.
Not through the Force.
Through instinct.
The same instinct that had kept explorers and daredevils alive throughout history.
The world felt wrong.
Then a voice echoed across the valley.
Mechanical.
Cold.
Familiar.
"You hide among ghosts."
Cal froze completely. The color drained from his face. "No."
A whisper. A terrified whisper.
Ani turned toward the ridge and found the figure emerging from shadow.
Black armor.
Black cape.
Red blade.
Darth Vader.
The stories had not done him justice. The sheer presence alone felt oppressive. Like standing before a storm. A natural disaster wearing human form.
Vader descended the slope slowly.
Confidently.
Certain.
His gaze settled on Cal. "Padawan."
Cal's lightsaber ignited instantly. The sound echoed across the valley yet fear followed immediately afterward.
Not weakness.
Memory.
The young Jedi remembered too well.
Then Vader looked beyond him looked toward Ani and the Dark Lord paused feeling something was wrong.
Impossible.
Familiar.
For the first time — Darth Vader stopped moving.
The mask stared. Unblinking.
Ani stared back.
Neither spoke.
Because suddenly the impossible stood before both of them.
A mirror.
Then Vader ignited his blade.
The moment shattered.
Cal moved first.
As expected.
The young Jedi launched forward.
Fast.
Skilled.
Brave.
Vader swatted him aside, like a storm throwing a leaf.
Cal crashed through ancient stone and the transmission camera he held tumbled.
Recovering moments later.
Far away, aboard the Horizon—The live feed illuminated the main briefing chamber.
Those on the observation room stopped and realized what was occurring.
Padmé watched.
Obi-Wan watched.
Yoda watched.
A young Luke and Leia present.
Everyone near the vicinity, silence filled the room.
Because nobody expected this.
Onscreen—
Cal struggled to rise.
Vader advanced.
Unstoppable.
Then Ani stepped between them.
"No."
The single word echoed as Cal looked up, horrified.
"Ani—"
The engineer never looked back.
"Get clear."
Vader's mechanical breathing filled the valley.
"You are not Jedi."
Ani nodded.
"No."
A pause.
"Never claimed to be."
The Dark Lord raised his blade.
"Then you are nothing."
Far away—Padmé's hand tightened around the armrest because Ani smiled.
The same smile.
The familiar one.
The one she unfathomably grew to love in spite of everything. The sheer improbability of his existence. The months and years since leaving Poli Massa under the weight of pain and grief. Short moments that grew longer the more she learned about this Anakin. Suddenly she realized something else. She had never seen him in danger. Small skirmishes here and there during their exile never showcased his skill. He never had to.
Not truly.
Not like this.
Then Vader attacked and the valley exploded.
Stone shattered.
Ground ruptured.
The red blade descended.
Ani moved.
Not fast.
Impossible.
Not human.
The strike missed by centimeters.
Vader's blade carved a trench through solid rock.
The room aboard Horizon froze.
Obi-Wan leaned forward as Yoda's eyes widened.
Cal forgot to breathe.
Because nobody had ever seen Ani move like that. Nobody. Years of restraint vanished. Not with anger or aggression, but control. Absolute control.
The second strike came.
Then a third.
Then a fourth.
Each one missed.
Barely.
Perfectly.
Ani flowed through the assault like water, with instincts learned since he was a child. Like someone whose body understood reaction at a level words could not explain.
Vader stopped.
Confused.
Impossible.
Then Ani did something worse, he refused to attack with every opening ignored. Every opportunity passed over.
The valley trembled. The Force exploded outward causing ancient ruins to collapse. Mountains groaned.
Cal stared.
Speechless.
Because Ani stood at the center of it all. Unmoved. Not overpowering Vader, yet not defeating Vader.
Enduring him.
Then Vader unleashed the full weight of the Force.
The valley erupted.
Stone.
Metal.
Ancient debris.
Everything lifted.
Everything became a weapon.
And for the first time—
Ani stopped retreating.
Aboard Horizon Padmé rose from her chair without realizing it.
Everyone else stared at the screen because Ani finally looked angry.
Not furious.
Not wrathful.
Disappointed.
And somehow that felt far more dangerous.
The debris froze.
Every piece.
Mid-air.
The entire valley stopped moving.
Vader froze.
Cal froze.
The transmission room froze.
Because suddenly everyone understood that after all this time on board the Horizon and out on surveys, Ani had never been harmless.
He had been kind.
There was a difference.
And for the first time the mask of Darth Vader tilted upward.
Not in rage.
Not in hatred.
In shock.
Because standing before him was a man wearing his face.
A man protecting others instead of controlling them.
A man refusing power instead of embracing it.
A man who possessed every opportunity to do anything he wished...
And chose not to.
For the first time in years Darth Vader felt something unfamiliar.
Something terrifying.
It wasn't fear but recognition.
And across the stars, aboard Horizon, Padmé finally understood that the man she had grown to love had spent the last ten years hiding entire mountains of himself from the people around him.
Not out of deceit.
Not out of shame.
But because he genuinely hoped he would never need them.
And the most frightening thing of all?
The fight had only just begun. To Be Continued...