A Living Nightmare: A Star Wars SI

A Living Nightmare

Chapter 4: Unorthodox Trials

"Anger, fear, aggression; the dark side of the Force are they. Easily they flow, quick to join you in a fight."

Location: Coruscant Airspace - Shuttle Intinum

The Lambda class shuttle cut through Coruscant's skyline like a silver bullet. Night or day was irrelevant as I sat in the midsection of the ship, strapped in and awaiting landing. I wasn't alone in there, as I was accompanied happily by a small squad of plastic armored goons that Darth Vader decided would be buddying up with us. Some troopers stood, others sat in one of the eight passenger seats and all of them were curious as to what in the world was going on. There were six in total, all quiet. Though, I could hear Vader's breathing from the cockpit, making it not too quiet. The door that segregated the pilot and any potential passengers was left open. We had a pilot, I knew that much. I knew I was going down somewhere, to be 'tested' as Vader had put it. The potential horrors of whatever test it was that Vader would send me through sent tingles down my spine. I was not ready.

I gently closed my fist around the handle of the small case of med packs I'd been given, hoping that they would help. I would need it soon, since I felt a twinge of sharp pain from my knee on the long walk to the hangar before boarding the shuttle. Nothing else had been provided for this test, no weapons, no information. I had tried to feel further out as I had on the ship, I hoped to get a read on where I would be going. Instead, I was muffled, engulfed by the sheer darkness that Vader put forth. So I sat, in silence and in the dark, as the start of a gentle rain pattered against the hull of the gray ship. Awaiting my fate. Several minutes passed, until one of the Imperial's perked up the courage to break the relative quiet.

"You think this one's going to be a public execution?", asked one of the troopers near the rear of the shuttle. Helmet still on, the speaker in the helmet distorting their voice a smidge. Distinctly feminine. An awkward pause followed, lasting only a few seconds.

"If it's anything like Herrji VI", the one sitting next to me spoke up, shifting in his seat.

"Well, uh, hopefully it'll be quick." A hint of sadness and regret there.

"Lord Vader removed his binders. I don't think there will be an execution. I don't like any of this." interjected a third trooper from closer to the cockpit. Him I recognized, the one who brought to Vader while we were aboard the Star Destroyer. He had been dismissed to wait outside as me and Vader had a brief discussion.

I felt their anxiety and uncertainty, the hostility of some and the curiosity of the others. The silence settled in, as they knew idle chit chat with their superior in ear shot was a recipe for a trip to the morgue. Public execution, or as that being the possible reasoning for my being brought planetside or the woman's question made me, well, question what their purpose was. If I was to be tested, why bring the troopers? Two of them at the very least were accustomed to blindly following kill orders. Though I guess the one next to me just had reservations that he did not dare voice. Would it be me doing the executing? Now there was a thought.

I never killed before. I'd like to think I could, or would if it came down to it. Yet I always imagined if I had to, the deed would be done in self defense or someone I knew…not like this. Plus that's even if my conjecture was correct. The entire situation made me feel uneasy the more I thought about it. I shook my head a little, trying to clear my head and focus. I just had to survive. My old life is gone, and I'll have to change.

A different noise from the cockpit perked my ears, a shrill beep from the control console. The pilot spoke into the comms, now connected to someone else on the other side.

"This is shuttle Intinium, requesting access to Imperial Palace airspace."

My heart stopped. The world grew cold.

"Shuttle Intinium, this is Palace control. Transmit clearance code."

'Why the Palace? Why so close to the Emperor?'

"Transmitting clearance code now."

Vader assured me I would not meet the Emperor so soon.

'What reason would he have to lie? To put me off guard? Or is this just something else?'

"Code received. Proceed to platform A83."

My breaths increased, ears started to ring like bells. That attempt at being calm, definitely failed.

"Acknowledged." the pilot stated.

The ship began to descend, and as it did the rain slammed harder against the metal hull.

Location: Coruscant

Imperial Palace

The shuttle's exit ramp lowered itself slowly onto the platform, the sounds of air speeder traffic funneling into the confined space. The troopers had stood up from their seats, those that were sitting at the very least. Lord Vader stood behind all of them as the pilot simply said that he would be waiting for Vader's return. Meanwhile I stood next to Vader as the Troopers exited, and I could already feel the temperature change in the air, it was a wet, cold and rainy day. I wasn't sure if Coruscant still had atmospheric manipulating machines, I remember reading they had somewhere, but I sure would wish if they still did, they would make the weather pleasant. My body never was one for the cold, and especially being wet on top of it. No coat, nothing to block it.

Great. Just great.

It's going to be a miserable walk if it's one of those long platforms that go into the temple itself, or what used to be the Jedi Temple.

A rush of cold air sped into the shuttle, garnering a slight shiver from myself. The squad of troopers started their march into the rain, followed closely by Vader.

"Two of you will watch the ship and await my return. The rest will follow.", Darth Vader commanded, pointing at one of the troopers.

"421, 893. Stay here.", half shouted, half commanded the woman in the less than stellar Imperial gear and who now I see, was probably their squad leader.

The named troopers nodded and headed back into the shuttle, whose ramp was still open, and misting particles of stray rain were drifting inside thanks to the growing winds. I braced myself as the misting droplets that wet my skin broke into a deluge of cold rain, soaking myself and the new uniform. The metal case in my hands was quickly growing even colder to the touch and I tightened my grip to keep it in my hand.

I made my way to place myself behind Vader but distanced enough to at least appear as some form of attache. Oh, and of course the Sith had to be walking at a leisurely pace. I bet he even enjoyed my suffering, as I felt my hands go slightly numb. Who would have thought a high enough elevation would make everything that much colder!

I kept my pace up as best I could with the mild limp I had, but the pain was growing, mutating from a dot of discomfort on the ride here, to a sliver of burning tension. I figured it would be best to nip the bud early, and swapped hands that were holding the medpacks, so I could open and access the items inside.

Except, my hands were half numb. The case was slick thanks to the freezing rain, and thus slipped and slid onto the ground, past one of the troopers and hitting the small rounded edge of the platform so as to not fall off entirely.

"Shit. Sorry!" I called out instinctively as I heard one of the troopers stop and stoop to pick my belongings up. "I can get it."

I began to walk up to the trooper but Vader spoke up, stopping me.

"Dispose of that."

Another order. At my detriment. The rain continued to fall, and another shiver ran through my body. This one involuntarily as I twisted to face the Dark Lord of the Sith.

"I need them to recover properly." I argued, and added, "I need to be at my best for whatever it is you're planning."

I had to play it smart, who knows what I would be dealing with. Truthfully, I felt I shouldn't even be up and walking with the amount of pressure my knee was feeling at that moment.

A miniscule tug and twist of the Force, and the case sped across the pathway and was floating above Vader's gloved hand.

"You are mistaken in believing your recovery is of importance."

Metal and plastics twisted inwards, the medical fluids inside and glass crushed. A warped wreck fell to the metal walkway with a hollowed thud, splashing into the water collecting in puddles that split off and trickled along the sides of the walkway's few inch high barrier where open vents let the cold liquid flow into internal piping.

"Pain, anger, hatred. Your suffering. Use it.", and with one raised hand, I felt hostile intent from the troopers. Their blasters were raised, their barrels trained right on me, the telltale clicks of safeties being switched off. I could even sense the over eager intentions of one, their finger itching to pull the trigger.

"Or you will die, where you stand."

Now, if I were more skilled in the Force, more sure of myself, I would take this as an opportunity to flee. Push one trooper, dodge the bolts coming my way, try not to get struck down by Vader, grab a blaster to protect myself with and then jump to the city below and hope to land onto a speeding vehicle.

That would be an enjoyable and far more active start to all this mess, but…I was not at the skill level of a Jedi Master, let alone an initiate. I just had an innate sense through the Force. The energies that wrapped around the galaxy and the creatures in it, could be mine to manipulate and command. Of course I wouldn't die here. And I sure as hell was tired of standing in this damn rain.

Rather than give an audible answer, I turned and kept walking. Each step, came a little bit of discomfort. I pushed on, hearing the clicks of the safeties locking back into place, the fast plashes of Vader's heavy boots hitting the rising water pools. I slowed down to let them catch up, so I could at least not get lost, or worse. I dared not try to further my senses more than a few yards ahead, not even wanting to risk brushing against Palpatine's sickening presence.

The rain disappeared, we arrived inside a busier hangar, flight crews prepping ships, tinkering with repair work. The noise was abundant, mixing with the rainfall outside. I could feel a headache starting to come on as we passed through, the workers keeping their distance.

"Lord Vader! I was not aware of your arrival, shall I inform the Emperor you are here?"yelled an Imperial Officer as we grew closer to the end of the hangar, trying his best to be heard over the shrill scraping of a buzzsaw some idiot thought to start using.

"No. I will not be here long.", Vader spoke, walking past the man and entering a hallway. We all shuffled in, walking some distance before making a left to a set of elevators. The air inside the Imperial Palace was pleasant, not cold like I would expect it to be. Lush carpet dampened the sounds of our collective boots, absorbing the water that collected and dripped from the armor the others wore.

The warmth at least helped to ease my misery, as the shivering began to be constant.

"Stand guard. I will return shortly." ordered Vader, as we came to a stop. The slip of a door opened, and he entered. I followed, realizing it was an elevator only when I hit the edge of the back wall with the tip of my boot.

The door closed and the Sith Lord pressed a single button with a wave of his hand. No music, just the noise his respirator generated. Not one for awkward elevator rides, I deemed it a good time to bring up a question that has been eating at me since our meeting on the Star Destroyer bridge. It was a quick briefing, Vader telling me we were at a destination to test me and ordered me to follow. I couldn't even get a word in, sensing anything to cause delay wouldn't just end up with me with an injured knee.

"Where are we going, exactly?", I asked, shifting my weight onto my good leg as the elevator took us to our destination. It has been roughly thirty seconds since the hydraulic doors closed, and I knew elevators on Coruscant had to be quite fast with how tall the buildings could get. Well, more like assumed and hoped that was the case.

Darth Vader remained silent for a few moments before cryptically saying, "Below the Temple."

I knew what he meant. I knew to an extent what was supposed to be down here.

A Sith Shrine, maybe an ancient Sith temple of sorts. A concept that existed in Legends which was the old Jedi Temple being built atop a wellspring of Dark Side energies. In the Clone Wars show, it was an idea for something for Ahsoka to deal with after her leaving the Order. Sidious would try to gain access to it, and she would stop him or something along those lines. One way or another, it was not somewhere I would ever want to be. I know what the Dark Side is capable of. What it can do to people, and what happens to those who can't control themselves. I always compared it to a drug, fine in small doses, addicting either way. Yoda was right in that manner, once you start on that path, you can never go back. At least, most of the time.

I looked over to where Darth Vader stood. Fear and pity slithered into my heart, mixed with hope. Hope that my being here doesn't change anything too much, I don't want it to change too much. Fear that I will change too much, and cause greater pain and break the 'canon' of events. Though, I guess I'd just need to play it safe, be the pawn, be whichever tool I needed to be and take on whatever role I'd have to play. The butterfly effect was something I wanted to avoid, flap a wing at one end of the ocean, the miniscule gust warps into a hurricane. No hurricanes from me please, I just wanted to make a slight breeze at worst.

The trip was nearly three minutes, and the moment the elevator doors slid open, I wrinkled my nose in disgust. It smelled like rot and sulfur, burning my nostrils. I had to cover them. Not caring in the slightest, Vader strode past me and made his way into the cavernous expanse that sat underneath the Imperial Palace, knowing which way led to the old shrine. I simply followed, watching my step and trying not to trip on the jutting rocks and stalagmites that dotted the whole area. Drops of water fell into stagnant pools, winged creatures fluttered and screeched elsewhere in the cave. It was a hive of activity, and surprising that things actually lived down here and survived so close to a concentration of corruptive energies.

"I have to wonder, why go through all this trouble?" I asked aloud, my voice echoing several times. "Why not just kill me and be done with this?" I needed an answer.

"Your connection to the Force is unique. It would be wasted with your death."

The honesty was surprising, I expected something cryptic and vague, or just to be ignored.

"How do you even know it's unique? How can you even tell?", I pressed. There was something else. I could feel it.

"We have arrived." stated the armored cyborg, standing in front of something.

I closed my eyelids and pressed my senses out, feeling the hard edges of the rocks, the smooth surface of the molded stone and crafted metals that were the walls of the shrine's entrance. No door, open for any to enter. Further in, I felt it. That pure swarming, folding, writhing mass of energies collecting into itself and spreading out to seep into everything around it. That was the Dark Side, probably the after effects of some ancient ritual or mass sacrifice gone wrong. My skin lost its warmth as a cold chill flickered through my bones, and I took a step back.

"You will go in alone, I will return in three days."

Before I could muster a single word in response or question, I felt a dark power wrap itself around my body and hurl me through the open doorway, slamming me forcefully onto the stone flooring. Vader just threw me around like a dog with a chew toy, and damn it hurt. I coughed, the air having been knocked out from me, and now my face hurt as well, ribs tingling on top of all that. I coughed more as I pushed myself up, and then instinctively rushed myself further inside as that same power pulled at the old stones above, and with a sharp yank, the entrance collapsed. Dust flying everywhere with a big orange poof, or maybe black, where I was thrown.

I was trapped in here, all thanks to Vader.

"So much for not planning to kill me, asshole!" I yelled at the rocks, hoping he heard me. "Seriously, man." I mumbled, pushing myself up and swiping at my uniform, trying my best to get the dust off.

"Nowhere to go but forward then." I state, closing my eyelids again, reaching my hand out to direct my senses better. I had no real need to close my eyes, but I felt like it helped, even if it didn't. Stone, metal, rock, all tainted with the dark side. Nothing living here, nobody but me.

I walked, eyes closed and senses spread out. And I walked. And I walked some more. It was a unnecessarily long hallway that seemed to never end, with the methodical pace I set. But when it did, I opened my eyes, my hand still raised.

I saw. Green grass, the sky a brilliant blue without a speck of billowed clouds. Homes across the street, shingled roofs, red brick, some painted with an off white or mixed with blues. Flower beds with flowers or green bushes, trees here and there. An idyllic suburb tucked away in a wooded area of a small country town.

I was home. I looked down at my clothes. Jeans, shirt, jacket, nothing out of the ordinary.

I blinked, shaking my head. I wasn't dreaming, was I? I came to terms with where I was. But now I'm back home?

"This is a trick. Come on, I'm not some gullible brainlette." I call out, looking around the empty street.

A car door slams close behind me. A Toyota Camry, and my mother stood there. A little shorter than myself, black hair, tanned skin having worked at different campsites near yearly. She was in a red tank top and lengthy gray shorts, her half bag, half purse draped on her right shoulder.

"Who are you talking to Alonzo?"she asked, eyebrows quirked, arms folded.

This wasn't my mother. I sighed and tried to connect with the Force. That all familiar cold rushed to greet me. It was a vision, brought on by the dark side in this shrine.

And it dared, to use my memories, use that of my old neighborhood, and my mother.

"Whatever the hell you are." I growled, reaching out with the Force to my mother, raising this visage, this fake, off the ground. I didn't even have to try, I just did it. The Force was like an extension of myself in a way, and I was not happy.

"My mom is gone.", my voice sharpening as my grip tightens. Cold rage, anger, tempered into a weapon. I harness the Force, utilizing those emotions, and the life of the fake dwindles as the air is choked from its lungs.

"She died. My brothers died. I am the only one left, so don't you dare try to manipulate me. I will do what I have to do. I have made peace with that fact.", I continue, as my 'mother' struggles against the unseen hand clamped to her throat. Her hand reaches out, pleading. I can see the pain on her face. I feel tears well up in my eyes. It's a fake, it's not her. I know that, but that does not mean it doesn't affect me. It looks like my mother for fucks sake, of course I feel something aside from the anger at it. But I can't do anything, I have to move forward. Step by step, body by body if I have to. Is that evil? Certainly, but sacrifices need to be made, starting with myself.

Crack.

The neck breaks, the body falls. I felt empty, the rage subsiding. Those tears that were welling up fell down my cheeks, stinging my eyes a little. I looked away. I had seen the corpse in a casket once before, no need to retread old memories, and shifted my gaze to the old home I spent so much of my life in. I knew in my heart, I'd never see it again.

"I'm sorry. I know you raised me to be better than this. But, there's nothing I can do. Not yet."

The vision fades, along with my sight, though not before showing me what and where I was standing. A square room, a circular platform, four corners occupied by kneeling statues on one knee, backs bent and heads down. Their arms were raised to the ceiling, the rocks molded into it to give the appearance of the statues holding it up. It was ancient architecture, hundreds of years old, maybe more. A long dead body laid in one corner, tattered robes decayed with time, webs covering the skeleton head to toe.

At the center of the circular platform, in front of me, was a holocron. Red, laced with gold lines, and a black strip of metal on each of its angled sides. It was a pyramid, a Sith Holocron. Who's, I did not know. But I definitely wanted to find out.

I walked up to it, my eye sight now gone. All around me, there was this suffocating aura, a pressure I could feel in my head. It was like being in the depths of the ocean, able to breathe but in fear that your body would break at any moment.

And it stemmed from that holocron. I placed a hand on it, and as I have been learning to do: focused on the Force. Remembering the vision, the pain that came from it, the misery of the injuries I have sustained, the loss of home, the loss of my sight, everything thus far came crashing down to a boiling pot of emotions. And I let it fuel me, energizing the Holocron and willing it to open.

"You who would be Sith. What is your name?", questioned the device. The voice was male, though distorted through a synthesizer like that of a Mandalorians helmet or Vader's own mask.

"Alonzo Revanche." I state, feeling the energies flow from within the Holocron. This was unexpected. Didn't know I would have to go through an interview to be able to use this.

"And what do you know of being a Sith?", the Holocron hissed.

"Servants of the Dark Side, enemies of the Jedi. They are not afraid to use their passions to drive them and their ambitions." I pause for a moment, "To them, peace is a lie. Life is a struggle. The struggles and the passions that drive them grant greater strengths, as individuals. Thus their victories are well won and fought with power gained, and have meaning to them."

"And through victory, your chains are broken. The Force shall set you free.", finished the holocron. "For a fledgling, you understand the Code quite well."

I gave a satisfied smile. I had a lot of reading done as a kid, a lot to think about. The Darth Bane books really helped me understand the Sith, and thus, where I derived my answer. The Sith Code itself can be interpreted as a self serving doctrine, which it often is. But it is also freeing, for those who are weak, helpless, it is a source of encouragement. The denial of basic struggles as with the Jedi code always, always put me off of the Jedi. The way I see it, both sides have their points and it gets people killed. Now here I am, on one side of this conflict. Against my own will.

"I had good teachers," was my smug answer.

Snap-hiss

A lightsaber ignited down the hallway, the heavy steps of boots sounding ever closer.

"Then let us see if these teachers versed you well in combat, as well as they did in philosophy.", laughed the Holocron, shutting itself down.

The pressing aura shifted, a portion lifting and allowing my senses to push outwards.

Someone was coming, they were calm, collected, at peace. It would be a few moments before they reached the chamber I was in, and then I felt it. There was something else in here, something with a sliver of energy, connected to the Force itself. I reached out with my hand, and it came.

Cold metal, covered in dust, and half of it rusted on the back portion. Easy to hold with no control boxes in the way, a small flare at the top to keep the hands from slipping into the energy beam. It was light, having some weight but nowhere near as heavy as the classic Skywalker family metal replica I had at home. Now that was a beast that weighed more than I had expected it to.

A big grin filled my face as I pressed the button near the top of the hilt. I was excited, anticipating this very moment, despite the situation I found myself in.

Shreet-spheew

The energy from the weapon sprang to life, a brilliant deep blue. I could feel the energy pouring out of this thing, it was weighty for sure. And, it wasn't mine. It would be difficult to wield, and even more so without any training. I had to be careful.

I was not alone anymore, as the being stopped at the entrance. I could see him through the Force, looking around at the room, lingering on the holocron before pressing his full attention on me. The green blade he carried matched the swirling energies around him, though they were diminished being in a place such as this. Perhaps that would give me a slight advantage.

"Who are you?" I asked, keeping the saber to my side, hoping to appear not threatening. I would shut it off, but I had nowhere to stow it.

"An archeologist with a lightsaber.", the man joked with a little laugh. He sounded young enough, but definitely older than me. The way he carried himself, the way he was calm, he wasn't scared of me, had no reason to be. I was half tempted to give him a good reason to, but I held my hand. I had to play this smart.

"If you're an archeologist, then I'm the resurrected Mark Ragnos." I replied back, giving a little polite smile. "But I'm guessing you're here for that." I pointed with the blue blade of my saber at the holocron, which was situated between the two of us.

"I am. And, if you wouldn't mind, I would like to take it without bloodshed.", he gestured with an open palm, ready to take it.

The idea crossed my mind, letting the man take the holocron. But we'd both end up dead if we were to take that course of action.

"Lightsabers don't draw blood. I can give a demonstration if you wouldn't mind losing that hand." I respond, two handing my weapon to get better control.

I let out a small breath to calm myself. My knee was killing me, I shifted to my dominant leg, spaced my legs out as best I knew how to.

The man said nothing, put his hand down and rushed forward with an aim to kill.

He stabbed towards my left shoulder, I swatted it away, pushing his blade up into the air with more force than I meant to.

The hilt in my hands almost slipped free of my grasp but I tightened my grip and brought down a vertical slash that aimed for his right shoulder but he blocked it easily enough. Our two sabers locked a moment before the claimed archeologist brought a knee up to my stomach, being a few inches taller he could easily reach it. He had reach, skill, and height on his side. I had nothing, severely outclassed.

I backed off, stumbling and clutching my stomach, my back now against the literal wall.

"Shit, ya didn't have to bruise my guts before you spill them." I commented, ducking under a horizontal swing to my head, then following up with a low sweep for his legs which he knocked to the side with ease.

"Far too messy when I can just remove your head!", he responded, knocking me back with a close range force push against the wall.

I was dazed for a brief second but that was all he needed to try again for my head, and succeeded as I failed to bring my saber up in time.

All I saw was green and a flash of light.

I was still standing, right hand on the Holocron, and in my left hand was the hilt of the discarded lightsaber. It was another vision, that one blending in rather well. Sneaky, I should have noticed. I suppose I was too occupied in the present.

The Holocron chimed to life, verbalizing again, "It appears your skills are less than adequate. Yet, that is why you are here. To learn from me, the lessons your masters will not teach you."

"I have three days." I say, picking up the holocron with both hands, having let the lightsaber fall to the floor with a tink of metal meeting stone.

"Teach me.", I requested, as I found a place to sit and put the holocron on the cold ground.