The ship drifted through the stars akin to a boat floating aimlessly, a ship of republic make, a Corellian cruiser whose crew were as silent as a whisper within the halls of the vessel.
However the ship was not silent, not in anyway, for the vessels sirens blared a shrill cry that echoed through the empty halls. Red lights surged, yet for all their noise, for all the light. Nothing moved, the white halls dyed red didn't chatter with life. The mess hall didn't flutter with activity and the bunks didn't drift with sleeping men and women.
Silence was all their was, no life... no death... just empty, As if this vessel farther away from the galactic center an ship had ever been had never been crewed in the first place.
And as it drifted, a cold weight fluttered through sterile halls, a chill that would have made spines tingle and bodies quake, an oppression so strange and so wrong that if felt like aberration given form, like the void had crawled forward to give itself life and mocked the creation of everything else.
" ..... "
Darkness stared through the cruisers bridge, towards the spinning skyriver galaxy in the distance, where everything that had ever happened in this universe originated from. A figure draped in black stood at the helm of the abandoned vessel, shrouded by night and caressed by creeping tendrils that crawled from under the hood he wore.
".... "
The hood of what was assumedly a male tilted ever so slightly as it studied, the only thing visible behind the fluttering hood being a kaleidoscope of stars, shifting lights and galaxies slamming together, supernova blending together in furnaces to burn away worlds, blackholes colliding to consume.
Stars rupturing, all within this beings eyes... a reflection of the world it had once existed within.
"..... "
Its hood snapped to the side suddenly, staring at a particular portion of the galaxy, where spinning dust clouds crawled, where stars dimmed and shone all in tandem together.
' come on lets go ... lets burn the stars together once more, please please PLEASE PLEASE ' The shrill cry of a female wrung within the head of this being, her desperate cry for destruction and death the very cornerstone of her being.
' silence you fiend ... ' another presence stirred behind those star flecked eyes as several tens... hundreds began to wake from their slumber in this beings body, a thousand minds all mingled together, forced to share space since the days of old, yet this was their wish, so they coexisted.
' You wretch get over here so i might rip your head from your body ' Thus started an argument anew, as shades long forgotten spewed insults, changing forms and striking out at each other within the confines of this great beings mind... all the while he simply stood... he simply stared out at the sky river galaxy ... unblinking. Until...
" Silence .... " The one word stifled all arguments, as the very weight of his voice ruptured the very order of the world around, a thousand voices uttering at once in a great cacophony of shrill cries. And so they did, they shrunk back into his consciousness like fingers of shadows, hiding away lest they be torn apart like the weaker and more annoying of their kin.
' Pff serves them right' The one ... eerily powerful woman whom had plagued his life for years stayed put, knowing her favorable within the great beings mind, she relished his favor, stroked his ego and watched everything through his eyes like se may live through his sensations. ' what now dear'
He could picture it, brown tapestries of hair cascading down her face as dark glowing yellow eyes would flutter, her sharp features softening the way a predator tries to pretend not to be. The mental image almost made his lip twitch in amusement.
" The galaxy has changed... i wish to study it " And so, the force grew heavy as a visible distortion rumbled around the ships exterior, as a sort of purple colored bubble formed around the vessel, and without so much as a whisper, the ship vanished from the dead planet it had found itself orbiting. It didn't jump to light speed for there was no working hyperdrive, no it was more akin to the i=universe folding around the ship, a like a hole punched in the fabric of space for a second to allow for the ship to fall through and transfer across space.
....
Within the glistening spires of coruscant, where the light and dark side clashed in a war nobody understood, the jedi sat on their ivory chairs in their temple, trusted to guard the republic as they had done so for millennia.
" there has been an occurrence in the outer rim" A brown skinned man draped in pale robes gestured to the small unassuming creature at his side, whose eyes seemed lost in thought, ears twitching as he looked out of the council chambers." We must dispatch a fleet to cut off the separatist movement immediately"
Windu gave a glance to Yoda before Kit Fisto looked up, Squaring his shoulders slightly.
" Kenobi and skywalker are nearby, i believe their forces would be able to intercept separatist forces before they move too far into the mid rim " Fisto recommended as the council gave their agreement.
" Inform them of the update, we shall mobilize to back them up" With that the council disbanded to their duties, rushing into the halls of the temple, whilst Windu remained, studying yoda whom hadn't said a word since the beginning of the council meeting.
" Master yoda... is something wrong " Windu leant down in a rare display of humility and worry. It was then that Yoda's eyes seemed to regain clarity, narrowed and full of worry.
" I feel something... i fear... is amiss in the force "
....
Yavin's skies cried, as they had done everyday for a thousand years, as droids and republic troopers waged their war in the tundra that covered its surface.
Obi-wan Kenobi headed the clones offensive, driving the separatist forces farther and farther back toward their stronghold. His blue lightsaber in hand.
" I understand... may the force be with you " Kenobi shut off his holo communicator and refocussed his efforts on guiding the troops at his side, commander cody at his side as he deflected bolt after bolt towards the b1 and b2 droids in the trees.
" New orders" Kenobi announced as he ducked a bolt, whilst Cody struck down a droid. " We must finish our offensive then intercept a separatist fleet mobilizing toward the mid rim"
" Again " Cody cursed as he blaster slung several rounds, as Kenobi bounced up, leapt forward and severed several droids in half.
" Unfortunately, i hope Anakin is having more luck than we are "
....
Lightsabers crashed against each other under the watch if Yavin, moving faster than any human should, red met blue as violent sparks flew about in all directions. A young man's teeth gnashed together, his blue eyes reflecting the blue and red in his eye as he stared hatefully at the banshee across from him, his padawan brain fluttering in the wind.
" Something wrong skywalker " The shrill voice of the banshee cooed as her twin blades pushed the jedi back, the markings on her skin stained with the rain from above, as she danced to the left, deftly dodging several hammering strikes that would have ended her instantly.
" That's not very jedi like " Ventress danced onto the steps of an ancient temple, as anakin followed, both ignorant of the palid translucent figures watching their battle with what was akin to childish amusement.
" Youuuuu" Anakin surged forward, the scar on his eyes burning hot, mere minutes after it had been afflicted, to forever mar his face. His savage strike carved stone apart, his thunderous sweeps from left to right fueled by nothing but a desire for revenge and destruction.
" now now... thats not " Their blades clashed once more as they continued to ascend, jumping higher and higher as each exchange grew more ferocious. The cutting edge of anakins saber passed a hairs breath from the assassins neck, as she leant back just enough to avoid being beheaded, her eyes wide before she leapt up and back several metres. " Get back here... "
Wide eyes regarded the trembling jedi overcome by his rage, as not for the first time ventress slowly understood that perhaps this jedi wasn't as soft as the others, gnashing teeth propelling him upwards as he swept his blade from low in an effort to bisect her in half from the waist upwards.
" Angry skywalker, about a little scar " She half flirted in silent fear as he advanced, the two finally reaching the top of the great staircase to the top of the temple, where they began their exchange anew.
Ventres leapt back and forward, as Anakin savagely swung with his movements guided by rage, the hiss of his saber cutting part the rain accompanied by the sounds of their striking sabers. His craze was alive in his eyes, as he wound left, kicked out and planted his foot in the assassins midsection.
" You die " He hissed as he raised his blade into the air as Ventress dropped to the ground , the air robbed from her lungs at the savage strike, she barely had time to look up, the darkness of her would be killers silhouette reflected in her gaze as he slowly raised his saber over his head, simply staring down at her wit pure hate in his yes,
" AAAHHHHH " Anakin raged as he raised his saber to strike the bald banshee down, yet as his blade reached its highest point, Yavin itself seemed to shudder as the force suddenly cried out in warning across the world. From Anakin to Kenobi mounting a defensive against the droid forces, they all turned their gaze upwards to a Corellian cruiser screaming from the skies, tearing apart clouds as it dropped from the skies towards the separatist base in the distance.
The force rippled from the ships in waves so powerful they might as well have been tangible. Not tinged with light nor dark, just raw power singing into the world itself.
As the ship fell, with Skywalker noticing Ventress had used their distraction to flee, the ship slammed into the ground with the force of a fallen meteor, shaking the ground even from the distance they stood. Yet the presence it radiated didn't vanish in the fiery explosion nor did it shutter, instead yavin itself seemed to grow more tumultuous, as if it had woken from its slumber nobody knew it had been in. Storms came to life from soft rains, screams echoed from the halls of hidden temples, an audible groan seemed to rumble across the lands as the very earth shook. Yavin knew, as did every spirit and sapient creature that had lived there, its master had come home. Neither the jedi nor Dooku's assassin understood the change in the atmosphere, the very churning of the force, but they knew... they understood that something had just arrived.
And in the wreckage of the separatist base, where the mangled wreck of the cruiser buried itself into the side of the mountains, a figure draped in black stepped through the hissing flames without so much as flinching. As the droids gathered and recuperated, turning to face the lone figure to step out of the flames, their weapons drawn to fire upon the unknown.
" You're not supposed to be here " Yavin rumbled at the layered voice composed of men women and children rolled into one, as a staff appeared in the beings left hand, and a saber appeared in his left. A black of black and purple screaming to life much different to any lightsaber the droids had ever bore witness to.
" JEDI " And so a thousand blaster bolts rained down, and the man moved to meet them, a shadow on the world that moved akin to a smear on a painting rather than a physical being .
" Hm "
...
I HOPE YOU GUYS LIKED THIS OPENING CHAPTER, WE'LL BE JUMPING RIGHT INTO THE CLONE WARS WITH THIS ONE
IF ANYONE HAS ANY THOUGHTS, COMMENTS OR IDEAS PLEASE FEEL FREE TO POST AS I LOVE HEARING FROM MY READERS