#Chance to have a live action look into the Jedi Order during the High Republic era: thrown away

[anthony-crowleys]

POV: you're thinking about all the lost potential that The Acolyte had

[jasontoddiefor]

Tiny Emperor Luke AU Chapter 10

Also known as “Obi-Wan thinks Luke is dead and grieves on Alderaan ft. Bail Organa”.

Tumblr Tag | AO3

The first few days back on Alderaan passed in a haze. He knew he had all but collapsed in Breha’s arms, running low on energy. Obi-Wan had made it through the worst the war and all that Tatooine’s summers had to offer and yet he had broken down like a youngling, utterly exhausted. The Queen had put him in the same little cabin he’d lived in just a month ago and given him strict orders not to disappear.

It seemed unbelievable. Obi-Wan’s life had changed within the span of days so often, and yet he couldn’t grasp that just a month ago everything had been alright.

Not perfect, far from it, but alright.

He had told Beru that he’d be gone for two weeks while Owen was out working on the vaporators. She had laughed, told him not to worry and allowed him to visit Luke. The boy had been sleeping right up until Obi-Wan had stepped into his room to leave him another toy ship.

Beru had once let it slip that Luke adored the handcrafted ships much more than any other of his toys, much to Owen’s annoyance.

“Owen Lars was a good man,” Obi-Wan said quietly.

Bail took a seat next to him on the sofa. Breha had returned to the palace while Bail had stayed behind.

“He took in Luke without asking another question, loved his wife and his nephew dearly. I think, for all that he resented the pain Anakin represented, he might have loved the chance to have a brother as well.”

During the really dark days, the second year or so he had been on Tatooine, Obi-Wan had wondered whether the reason they didn’t get along was the fact that Owen Lars was an inherently good man. He was protective of his family, devoted, and wanted nothing but to see them happy. He was honorable down to the core and had even brought water and food to Obi-Wan’s meager dwellings when he had come to ask about floating toys and the kind of separation anxiety only Force-sensitive children experienced.

Owen Lars was a good man and Obi-Wan was a monster.

He’d justified all his actions in front of the Council and they had approved again and again as he committed hideous crimes in the name of the Republic and peace. Looking back, Obi-Wan knew that the Jedi had fallen from their path the moment they had stepped up to be Generals, but there hadn’t been any other options. Obi-Wan hadn’t been a proper Jedi in over a decade and that was perhaps the only reason the next words escaped him so easily.

“I hated him,” Obi-Wan admitted. “Still do. He told me to stay away so I wouldn’t get even more Skywalkers killed and I did just as he asked me to because I thought he was right.”

Bail put his arm around Obi-Wan’s shoulder, the hold so reminiscent of the way little Leia had thrown herself around Obi-Wan’s neck on the last day he had been on Alderaan the first time around.

“It’s not your fault, Obi-Wan,” Bail said. “You cannot blame yourself.”

“But it is my fault. I should have been there, begun training Luke so he’d be safer and I would know if anything happened to him. He’d already latched onto me when we had finally made it to Tatooine and that bond never broke. I should have reinforced it. I was already thinking about keeping him, raising him myself, but I thought he would be better off with his family. I walked the edge of their land so often, tempted to steal him away, but I always told myself I couldn’t give him what he needed, that he'd be safer away from me and now he’s-“

Dead.

Gone.

Like everyone else. People always left him behind and not for the first time did Obi-Wan wonder what lesson the Force was attempting to teach him that he always failed it. Maybe he had never outgrown the angry thirteen-year-old child, too attached to everyone around him. The galaxy might be a better place if he hadn’t been in it. Anakin wouldn’t have been trained or maybe he would have gotten a Master who could have stopped him from falling, who’d be able to protect his children and burn the Empire to the ground.

Obi-Wan knew he couldn’t do it anymore.

“It’s not your fault,” Bail insisted. “You Jedi always had a habit of piling the weight of every star onto your backs.”

Obi-Wan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Held it. Exhaled.

“It was our calling,” Obi-Wan said. “We were meant to protect every life.”

If the desert had taught him one thing, then it had shown him in perfect clarity what the Jedi should have been doing. Obi-Wan didn’t know where Palpatine’s machinations had started and ended, how many choices his Order really had been able to make in the end before they were slaughtered, but he could feel in his bruised and broken bones who they always should have been.

And who Obi-Wan never could be.

“And what is your calling now?” Bail asked.

Obi-Wan didn’t have an answer for him. He should finish what he had started all those years ago on Mustafar, show Anakin mercy and kill Vader for his Padawan. He should look for any remaining Jedi, die in the most honorable way, like a star on the verge of collapse.

He should, he should, he should-

He didn’t.

Sensing that Obi-Wan didn’t have an answer for him, Bail began to speak again. Alderaan’s Senator had aged, but by far not as much as Obi-Wan and yet, despite all the marks grief had left behind, Bail still managed to smile kindly.

“After you left the last time, Leia kept asking for you,” Bail said. “’When is Mister Ben coming back?’ and ‘Do you think he can tell me more stories?’ She has taken quite a liking to you and not only because you showed her how to make her books float on purpose.”

“I can’t stay here,” Obi-Wan said. “The first trip here was already a risk and this second- I never should have come back.”

Alderaan was as anti-Imperial as you could be without outright committing treason. They were under constant scrutiny and Obi-Wan couldn’t risk endangering the government of an entire planet. If even just one Imperial spy could see past the image of a haunted man, Alderaan would be made an example of.

“But you did.”

“Because I was desperate.”

The brutal honesty had become one of Obi-Wan’s most well-known companions. On Coruscant, he always had to watch his words no matter whether he spoke in front of Representative or another Jedi. People had high expectations of him and Obi-Wan had lied so often to please everyone around him that the truth the sharp winds of the last years had cut into him was terrifying but relieving.

Bail let go of Obi-Wan and with a sigh unbefitting of a royal, jabbed Obi-Wan’s ribs like they were children instead of grown men.

“You are my friend and you were Padmé’s friend,” Bail said. “You’ve been alone for a very long time, so do me a favor and honor those friendships and let us help you.”

“I’m not a good man, Bail,” Obi-Wan said. “Chaos follows me everywhere.”

Bail smiled and Obi-Wan wanted nothing more but to know how he managed it after all the horrors he had been forced to witness.

“At least this way I’ll always know where it is, instead of having to chase my daughter down.”

“Leia is a sweet child,” Obi-Wan replied.

Happy too, loved and cared for like her brother had been.

“I’m not denying that,” Bail said. “I am simply pointing out that she also happens to be an utter terror with no regard for people who do not have her particular brand of luck on their side. It must be a Jedi thing, Master Kenobi.”

“I’m not a Jedi anymore.”

“You have to be. My daughter is depending on it.”

Obi-Wan was hesitant to try. There were so many things that could go wrong and Leia was safe still and with luck, she’d never need to wield a weapon, certainly nothing more dangerous than a blaster.

But if Luke had been able to, he might still be alive and Obi-Wan didn’t have anyone left. His people had all been executed and all that remained of them were him and Leia Organa, her father’s laughter and her mother’s wit.

“I need time,” Obi-Wan said.

Time to heal and time to think and time to teach Leia to be better than the Jedi had ever been.

“Of course,” Bail agreed.

Obi-Wan could only hope she wouldn’t resent him for burdening her with the legacy of a thousand generations, that someday she might even forgive him for depriving her of the chance to share that weight with her brother.

He wasn’t sure he ever would.

[swtorpadawan]

Promises

Author’s Notes: The following obviously applies to my main Jedi Knight OC, Corellan Halcyon, but I feel it could apply to a great many JKs, so i’ve used gender-neutral pronouns where possible. Graphics courtesy of Wookiepedia, since i’m away from my screen captures at the moment.  The Sith Lord known as Lord Scourge wants Revenge against Vitiate, the Sith Emperor. He wants revenge for what the ancient Sith Lord did to him three hundred years ago, granting him immortality but taking from him everything that made life worth living. He wants revenge for being forced to serve as his personal executioner for all of that time. It is true that Scourge may have started down this long and arduous path out of a sort of enlightened self-interest. Vitiate, Scourge knows full-well, is a threat to the entire galaxy. He has known that from the moment he met him in person so many years ago. The Emperor is a threat to everyone who has ever lived and to everyone who ever will live. But his anger and rage at his ‘Master’ have only deepened over the centuries. Scourge is incredibly fortunate that he burns cold, one of the side-effects that he suffers as the result of Vitiate’s ritual. Were it otherwise, the Emperor would surely have sensed the profound danger that his Wrath represented, and the unrepentant traitor has no illusions as to how that confrontation would end. After the Dromund Kaas operation, Scourge claims to stay with the Defender’s crew simply to be certain that the Emperor has left them no further surprises.   But somewhere deep down, Scourge knows that this isn’t the end of it. Something of the Emperor has survived. But he also knows the Jedi Knight will be there to see the prophecy through no matter what it takes. The Knight’s resolve is the equal of Revan’s, of the Exile’s and of Scourge’s himself. Perhaps even greater.  And Scourge will therefore aid the Jedi however he can. Lord Scourge stays with the Jedi Knight because they promise him Revenge.

Fidelitin Rusk has been fighting one battle or another for his entire adult life. He is considered ruthless and sometimes even reckless by his fellow Republic soldiers, and sometimes even by his crewmates. Rusk – the third-oldest member of the crew but perhaps the oldest in practical life experience – accepts these assessments without rebuke or defense; he is what he is. His entire mindset was constructed for battles and wars that had to be won regardless of the costs. Rusk has fought so hard and for so long that there are some days when even he starts to forget why he does what he does. Indeed, there are times when Rusk disapproves of the Knight’s choices, believing that they risk too much for others and that they are far too willing to however briefly put aside the greater mission to save even a single life all while the entire galaxy stands at risk.

But deep down, the lost soldier’s only true purpose has only ever been to defend those who cannot defend themselves. He was born and raised by a colony of pacifists; that didn’t stop the Empire from annihilating his people. When he looks at the Jedi Knight – so selfless and so brave, so willing to put themselves on the line for those who need them, he is reminded of the justness of that cause. And as he wins battle after battle and that cause is served, than perhaps everything that Rusk has done has been worth it.  

Sergeant Fideltin Rusk stays with the Jedi Knight because they promise him Victory.

Contrary to popular belief, Doctor Archiban Kimble knows perfectly how the rest of the galaxy, and even his closest allies aboard the Defender, view him. The man who calls himself Doc is seen as an arrogant, misogynistic, self-aggrandizing, fame-seeking, womanizing nerf-herder; a man who has left a seemingly endless line of women high and dry over the years, from Prudy and on down the list. Honestly? Doc wouldn’t have it any other way. Letting people believe that he cares so little about his personal relationships gives him a sort of shield against the things in the universe that he doesn’t want to deal with, all while still allowing him to continue to enjoy the things that keep him going.

But a man who worked his through medical school on his own merits and who has consistently chosen to serve as a combat medic on some of the most dangerous planets in the galaxy doesn’t do so just for fame, fortune and women. He could have had all that and lived in style while conducting research projects for a major pharmaceutical company back on Coruscant. No, once upon a time there was a young Archiban who set upon this path, and who did so for far nobler reasons then Doc would ever admit to anyone. Doc doesn’t know how, but for some reason, he knows that when the Jedi Knight looks at him, they see something beyond the broken healer who has put up a shell around themselves. The Knight then offers the medic an opportunity for a more meaningful existence than he could have ever dreamed of.  

Doc stays with the Jedi Knight because they promise to always Help others.

Some days, Kira Carsen feels like she’s spent her entire life just trying to be true to who she is in a galaxy that seems determined to force her to become something else. She was raised on Korriban by some of the most sadistic and fanatical Sith in the galaxy, the Children of the Emperor. Every time she sees one of her ‘siblings’ returning to the dormitories with missing pieces of their memory, she cringes and pulls up her blanket around herself. And when Kira returns one night and realizes she can’t remember what happened to her, she knows that soon, there will be nothing left of her identity, either. The survival rate of acolytes who flee the Korriban academy cannot be higher than two percent. Most flee into the wilderness and, when they aren’t immediately hunted down and killed, become ‘broken’, running around in gangs, often going mad. But ten-year old Kira smuggles herself out on an outgoing cargo ship, and a week later she’s on Nar Shaddaa. She sees the suffering of people, there. Those who are unable or unwilling to kick something up to the Hutts quickly find themselves sent down. The slums where refugees congregate are almost as cruel and unforgiving as Korriban. Life is hard, but here, Kira discovers something about herself. Inexplicably, she actually cares about other people; especially the ones who take her in, and who are too weak to fend for themselves against the predators among them. Then Kira meets Bela Kiwiiks and joins the Jedi Order. Kira is unbelievably grateful to Master Kiwiiks. The Togrutta got her off Nar Shaddaa, gave her a home and a place in the galaxy, and has given her a place in the galaxy and the chance to do some good. Master Kiwiiks is like the mother that she never had. Kiwiiks is gently but firmly trying to teach Kira to be the best Jedi she can be.      

But as proud as she is to be a Jedi, Kira Carsen is trying to be the best version of herself.

When she meets the Jedi Knight, everything changes very quickly. Somehow, the Knight trusts Kira against the Black Sun at the spaceport on Coruscant, and then later still when they’re hunting down Tarnis. When Master Satele instructs the Knight to take Kira in as a Padawan, Kira is elated. She follows the Knight’s lead, but she feels more like a partner than their apprentice. The Knight talks with her instead of at her, and they learn a great deal about themselves and the galaxy from each other. When Kira’s past is revealed, the Knight supports her unquestioningly; first against Valis, then against Master Jaric Kaedan and finally against the Emperor himself on Darth Angral’s dreadnaught. When Kira finally purges the Emperor from her mind, she feels the Knight reaching out to her, aiding her the entire time.

(All this comes before that night under the stars on Tython, when Kira finally jumps the Knight and they become far more than partners.)

Kira is still herself, learning and growing at her own pace. There are times she questions the Knight’s choices. She groans when they take in Doc and worries a great deal when they let Scourge join. But through it all, the Knight never asks Kira to compromise herself; they never tell her how she should feel or think about anything. The Knight simply asks Kira to trust them. And she does. The doubting Jedi questions many things; but they never question the Knight, because the Knight has never questioned her.

Kira Carsen stays with the Jedi Knight because they promise to let her be Herself , and because they let her become the best version of Herself she can.

T7-O1 – Teeseven to his friends – has served the Jedi Order for decades, and quite frankly, they would be hard pressed to find anyone who has done so with greater devotion. The astromech droid is more than content to carry messages and conduct reconnaissance for the Jedi as they continue to adjust to their home on Tython.

But for the mechanical servant, the most satisfying period of his existence was during the time he served as a companion to Jedi Master Ven Zallow, one of the greatest heroes of the Galactic Republic during the last galactic war. Zallow was a true champion of the ideals of both the Jedi and the Republic, serving with wisdom and strength. The little droid misses those days, fiercely. He knows the work he does for the Order is important, but nothing was more fulfilling than knowing ones actions have helped right a wrong or saved a life.  

After ten years of waiting, Teeseven is finally partnered with another hero. This one is even kinder and more powerful than Ven Zallow; they seem to do nothing but sacrifice for others. In the Jedi Knight, Teeseven has found a champion who can save the entire galaxy. Privately, the little droid does worry. He worries that the cruelties of this galaxy will weigh on the Knight, that they will become bitter with loss, and will eventually fall short of their ideals as so many Jedi have before.  But Teeseven will be there for the Knight, no matter what. They will follow the Knight into the darkest places in the galaxy, as they blaze a light. They will be the Knight’s friend, and show the Jedi the way. In return, the Knight will help Teeseven be what the droid always wanted to be.

T7-O1 stays with the Jedi Knight because they promise him that they will always be Heroes.

[battlekidx2]

Star Wars Rebels Rewatch Thoughts and Partial Review

Okay this is going to be a bit long because I have a lot of things I’d like to talk about. When I talk about the characters and standout episodes those are mostly my thoughts. When I talk about seasons as a whole those are more of a review.

I remember first hearing the announcement that rebels was going to be a show, reading the synopsis, and being immediately enthralled and excited. I love Luke, Leia, Han, Chewy, Obi Wan, clone wars Anakin and Ahsoka, but I was really interested in seeing how the empire’s rule would have affected other people and liked the idea of having a survivor of order 66 be part of the main cast. I remember this show fondly because unlike the clone wars, where I got into it in season 3, I got to watch this show all the way through from start to finish in real time. After a rewatch I still hold it in high regard and think that season 1 while not the best was a solid introduction to the characters, their struggles, and the beginnings of a wider rebellion with seasons 2-4 being great. 

Characters

Ezra:

Ezra is a character I have conflicting feelings about. In seasons 1 and most of season 2 the show seemed to struggle with what exactly to do with him and force him into every storyline even if the storyline would be better with focus elsewhere. This caused the show to give the rest of the ghost crew very little focus in season 1 and it wasn’t until season 2 that you got actual development and backstory for them. In seasons 3 and 4 this isn’t nearly as big of a problem and there are a lot more episodes dedicated to the rest of the main cast and they all have plotlines and arcs separate from Ezra. He also wasn’t the most interesting and, in my opinion, the least interesting of the main cast until twilight of the apprentice, which made the intense focus on him to be frustrating at times. Once the end of season 2 rolls around they do a much better job with him. Ezra is a character that I found to be by far at his most interesting while interacting with Darth Maul and struggling with the dark side. His struggle with the dark side was over way too quickly in season 3. He’s a character that I could see being a bit similar to Anakin in that his intense fear of being unable to protect his friends and family drives him closer to the dark side and this was shown wonderfully in twilight of the apprentice and steps into shadow. I was disappointed that they didn’t explore it more in depth because it could have been incredible. My only other problem with him in season 3 was how wildly inconsistent how capable he is was portrayed. In some episodes he would really screw up in ways that he should know better by now, like turning his back on a dangerous hostage and getting him and Sabine attacked, or too capable and “wise”, like when they had him “end” the clone wars and get the separatist and republic fighters to see his point of view. That last one bothered me because it took a lot of the nuance and sad pointlessness (because in the end both sides lost and were taken advantage of by the empire) of the clone wars and had Ezra, someone who didn’t even really understand what happened, resolve the conflict. They did take steps back in his development at the beginning of season 4, which I didn’t understand, and made him relearn the lesson “how we fight is what matters”. This is quickly rectified though and I absolutely loved what they did with him from Jedi Night on. His end saving his home world was fitting and I found myself sad to see him go. I’m conflicted on Ezra because I didn’t really like him that much in season 1 and a bit of season 2 and found him to be a lacking main perspective, but really liked what they did with him in seasons 3 and 4. Overall I liked him as a character, but not as the main perspective.

Kanan:

Kanan is who I felt should have been the main character. His journey of finding who he in the midst of tragedy after being forced to cut off a part of himself for so long and having to come to grips with having to face his trauma to do what’s right was fascinating. I liked how he was knighted despite the fact that he was so counter to what the Jedi were during the republic and I felt that was purposeful. Kanan seems to be the template for the new Jedi knight in a way. When Yoda gets around to training Luke he isn’t stuck to the old ways and doesn’t discourage attachment and I think that could have been influenced by Kanan. Kanan throughout rebels opens up more and more to people and suffers greatly, but because of those connections he isn’t tempted to the dark side. Every time he is beaten down it’s his care for others that makes him get up. His blinding and how he learns to connect with others and the world afterwards was one of my favorite parts of the show. He has to learn to see not just the world differently, but the force and everything's connection to it as well. He actually grows to become more pacifistic in a way and learns to better understand the feelings of the people and creatures around him. His relationship with the people around him grow and change as he does especially his relationships with Sabine and Ezra. He grows into a father figure of sorts for them during the course of the show. When his end finally comes he seems at peace with what will happen and dies so that his crew may live and Lothal will have a fighting chance. His death, while I knew it was coming since his introduction, was one of many emotional gut punches of the show and I really cared when he died. Kanan was my favorite character and I loved his growth in the show. I thought overall they did a really good job with Kanan and they seemed to know where they wanted him to go from the beginning. He was always meant to grow as a person and teacher with him finally dying for what he believed in and the family he made. 

Hera:

I really liked Hera as a character. I appreciated that her idealism did not equal naïveté. I think those two are too often associated with one another. Having Hera be idealistic and yet have the most realistic outlook of the ghost crew was refreshing. Hera truly believes in the rebel cause and puts everything she has into it. She creates a tunnel vision on fighting for a better future because war is all she has ever known. Hera doesn’t know what to do without a battle to fight and very nearly lets herself be consumed. She even states herself that she is fighting for a better future but has never considered a future for herself beyond the fight. She is pulled back from the brink by Kanan. Kanan and Hera have my favorite relationship of the show because there is actual communication between them. There isn’t any forced drama and you can tell what their relationship is through their actions. In the quiet moments between and after battles. It was devastating to see how Kanan’s death effected her. Shutting herself off from others and even doubting the cause she’s dedicated her whole life to. Hera was always the one encouraging everyone and providing hope when it looked lost, but in this moment she unravels and can’t do either of those things. And this realization that nothing last and that her new family may also be lost like much of her birth family carries through even after she regains her will to fight. When Ezra is going to turn himself over, despite it being what she would do in his place, she begs with him to find another way and it tug at my heartstrings because we know why she’s like this. She was always the pragmatic one that put the mission first and in this moment she was throwing it out the window and acting from her hurt and desperation. In the end even when Ezra turns himself over she does command the forces alongside Sabine and successfully help Ezra free Lothal. I really liked her character and my only real gripe is that I wish they had focused on her more in the earlier seasons. She also has some incredible feats while flying and the things they had her do were really creative. I really liked how capable she was behind the “wheel” and how that was a product of her love of flying and dedication.

Sabine:

Sabine was a character that I was initially very intrigued by. The fact that she was mandalorian and was at one point in the imperial academy were enough to get me interested, but the first two seasons didn’t explore much about her. When the episodes Trials of the Darksaber came around and the bombshells about her hand in Mandalore’s downfall and her family’s betrayal I was left in shock. I really liked these revelations at the time and appreciate them more in hindsight. Everything about her character in the first few seasons makes a lot more sense knowing her past. Horrible weapons don’t have to be created by bad people. Pride and arrogance can blind you and that’s what happened with Sabine, but she chose to own up to her mistakes and try to set things right. That’s what makes her one of our heroes instead of a villain. I really liked the way they handled the exploration of her guilt and determination to do what’s right. The sibling bond that her and Ezra grew to have ended up having some of my favorite moments of the show like when her and Ezra make eye contact in the finale and she distracts Hera for him to go and turn himself over to Thrawn. Overall I like what they did with Sabine, but once again felt like she should have had a bit more focus in the earlier seasons.

Zeb:

Zeb was a big casualty of the shows problems with spreading out the focus. He’s a character that actually got more focus in seasons 1 and 2 than he did in seasons 3 and 4. There was a lot of potential with his character that the show didn’t fully explore like his survivors guilt and his anger toward the empire because of the genocide. Zeb is a survivor of a genocide like Kanan and I think the show should have put an emphasis on their understanding of each other. It’s said but not shown nearly as much as I felt it should have been. I did like the storylines that did put focus on him though especially how he plays off Kallus in the show. From bitter enemies to reluctant allies to friends. And his relationship to Ezra was touching at times like how he hugged Ezra after Kanan’s death. Zeb is a character that I liked, but thought was underused the most out of the main cast.

Chopper:

Chopper was a surprise to me. I expected him to just be the token droid and he seemed like he may be in the first two seasons, but he actually gets a lot of development is seasons 3 and 4. Chopper doesn’t want to be put in a y-wing in the season 3 premiere and in Hera’s Heroes he’s frozen when he sees the y-wing he crashed in during the clone wars. There’s and underlying sadness and trauma there that is made very clear despite not real words being spoken. It’s also very clear that below his tough, cranky exterior he really cares about the members of the ghost crew. When Kanan dies he goes and holds Hera’s hand and makes sure she isn’t alone during this time. I loved this because it shows how close they really are. Hera shuts everyone else out at that time but Chopper. I truly felt by the end that chopper truly was part of the family of the ghost crew not just the token droid.

Kallus:

Kallus started out as a character you loved to hate and cheered when he lost. Kallus was threatening despite being unable to defeat the rebels in seasons 1 and 2. He was giving a good redemption arc that was kick started in the episode “the honorable ones” in season 2 where he is shown compassion by zeb and forced to reevaluate what he thought of the empire when he learns more about the rebels and their compassion for each other. The end of the episode perfectly juxtaposes zeb being found and happily accepted back by the rebels with Kallus returning to the ship with no one noticing he was gone and his poor condition with him sitting on his bed alone and disillusioned. He is finally faced with the reality of the empire’s cold calculation and uncaring nature and the rebels’ caring, fierce protectiveness. In season 3 I found him to be one of, if not the most, interesting character in the show. He had some fantastic episodes that centered around him like The Honorable Ones and Through Imperial Eyes. I really liked his storyline and how his relationship with Zeb became a story of compassion and forgiveness. The idea of breaking free from your programming and risking your life and everything you worked for because you now know what the right thing to do is the heart of Kallus’ journey. Rebels managed to turn a character I wanted to lose into a character I cheered for and was worried about when he was in danger. I wish he was used more in the 4th season when he’s with the rebellion because I think that would have been a fascinating dynamic for the show to explore.

On a side note: One small but telling moment with Kallus was when Thrawn is first introduced and everyone is praising him Kallus instead points out that civilian casualties outnumbered rebel casualties on Thrawn’s last mission and he is told that those numbers were acceptable because he brought the empire victory. Kallus looks displeased for a split second before getting his expression under raps.

Thrawn:

I really liked Thrawn as a villain. His cunning and genius was always intriguing when shown onscreen. I always felt like he was threatening and at times he even seemed unstoppable. Through Imperial Eyes showed a lot more sides of Thrawn than we had previously seen. He was a capable fighter and noticed intricacies within art that lead to him deducing Kallus’ identity as fulcrum. He was easily the best recurring villain of rebels. I never saw Ezra and Thrawn as true adversaries until the final episode of the series. He couldn’t be taken down unless something happened that was beyond his control and, at least I thought, it was implied that the force wanted Ezra to succeed in his mission to free Lothal and rid Thrawn from the rest of the rebel conflict. That the force had influenced the outcome in Ezra’s favor which just goes to show how much of an unstoppable force Thrawn was.

Standout episodes:

“The honorable ones” is a decidedly more nuanced look at soldiers within the empire. “I was… I was only doing my duty. I didn’t ask questions.”  This the first serious look into the inner workings of empire soldiers that I had seen up to this point. Kallus’ arc was about overcoming his training, drive, and brainwashing that what he was doing was right. That it was for the betterment of the galaxy and the protection of the empire and its people. He was sent into a battle he believed had to be fought believing that “it wasn’t meant to be a [genocide]”. All I could do was sit there and be amazed that we were actually getting a look into what soldiers must have been told and expected to do and realizing that what was happening around them wasn’t supposed to happen, but there’s no going back. It’s already been done. Having their fellow soldiers killed while on routine patrols just for being empire. Zeb tells Kallus “you can’t judge all Lasats by the actions of one” and Kallus shoots back “well does that apply to the empire too?” and it’s a valid question. The possibility of people being forced into the empire or taken when they are young and trained to believe what the empire tells them without being given a choice or even not truly believing and questioning the empire but being afraid to act out because of the empire’s power are all put onto the table here. As well as it being revealed that the soldiers aren’t given all the information about what the empire is doing and what they plan to do in their conquest. Not everyone within the empire wants to wage war and genocide. Not everyone is beyond redemption. I applaud this episode for daring to go here. It was willing to try and humanize the empire’s soldiers and kickstart one of my personal favorite character arcs of the show. With Kallus’ arc it managed to turn someone who was initially shown to be pretentious, ambitious, and cruel and have him admit to his wrongs, defy his programming, and risk his life and everything he ever worked for to do what he now knew to be right.

“Through imperial eyes” shifted the perspective character to Kallus with a very interesting choice to open with the audience seeing things through his eyes. This episode showed just how good Kallus is at being the rebel spy. He pins the blame on someone else through a series of well thought out actions and uses his observations and skills to evade capture and detection. Neither Kallus or Thrawn are depicted as anything less than cunning. Kallus is only found out by a blunder on Ezra’s part and the fact that Thrawn is a genius. The change in perspective to Kallus was a breath of fresh air. The change is tone and genre from action adventure to a kind of spy thriller works to the show’s favor. This episode showed both Kallus and Thrawn at their best and cemented Kallus as one of the most interesting characters in the entire show.

You can’t talk about standout episodes and not talk about “Jedi Knight”. This episode is probably the one, next to the finale, that I got the most emotional about during my rewatch. When I first watched this episode I remember there was a foreboding feeling throughout that the Ghost crew’s luck would finally run out. The entire episode was tense and despite knowing the outcome on my rewatch I was still on the edge of my seat and hoping the inevitable wouldn’t happen. The Kanan and Hera dynamic is touching and sad. I wanted them to get around to saying what they really meant and when they finally did I was sad because I knew their time together was at a close. I still wish they could have had their happy ending. Kanan seemed so accepting like he knew what was going to happen to him, but was okay because he would go out protecting the people he loves. When Kanan’s death finally happened and the episode quietly faded to white with ashes blowing past the star wars rebels logo I had to sit back once again and let that episode sink in. Kanan was my favorite character and his death impacted me and you could tell in that moment how much the ghost crew was hurting. I really liked this episode and thought it was well done from the music, to the dialogue, to the animation. Kanan’s death scene was one of the most visually stunning of the show and that moment when he regained his sight to see Hera, the woman he loves, one last time is etched in my memory.

“A World Between Worlds” was a really good episode focusing on loss. This whole episode was fantastic and I loved the idea behind the world between worlds. Finally getting closure about what happened to Ahsoka and having the ghost crew especially Ezra and Hera get closure for Kanan’s death were really well done. I especially liked when Ezra was given the chance to save Kanan and he struggles to let go and accept that he can’t save Kanan and the rest of the ghost crew. The struggle to not save his master and surrogate father almost overwhelms him and it is only through Ahsoka’s guidance and his own inner strength that he is finally able to let go and accept kanan’s death. “He’s gone now, isn’t he? I mean, really gone?” This line hit me like a ton of bricks while rewatching because there could be no more denial by the ghost crew (and myself). Kanan’s death was set in stone. This realization happens while looking out at a beautiful view at the temple and Hera has her hand on her shoulder where Kanan’s force ghost had touched her before. Ezra get one last look at the loth wolf Dume on the horizon before he fades from view giving him closure before turning and heading back to the ghost and the future. This last scene with Hera and Ezra staring out into the horizon and then turning back to the ghost after their closure makes me think that this symbolizes them looking back at the past, the good times, and the people they’ve loved and lost and turning back to the ghost is them turning back to the fight and the future instead of letting the past continue to hold them back despite how beautiful the past is and how painful the future and present may be.

Rebels has incredibly strong season openers and finales with the most well known being twilight of the apprentice, but all of them were great. 

Spark of the rebellion was a solid beginning to the series and did a good job of introducing us to the ghost crew. While the weakest of the season openers it contains one of my favorite moments of the series when Kanan reveals himself to be a Jedi. That scene still gave me chills upon a rewatch. It was a solid introduction to the ghost crew and gave a glimpse of what was to come.

The finale of the first season was easily the strongest episode of the first season. Kanan’s rescue and fight with the inquisitor were both very exciting. The Inquisitor’s parting words to Kanan “There are some things worse than death” was incredibly foreboding and still gets me excited for what’s to come (even though I know what’s going to happen). I like it when Kanan steps up to the plate and takes out a powerful enemy like the inquisitor and maul. I still really like that the burn Ezra gets on his cheek stays for the rest of the series.

The second season premiere “the siege of Lothal” was an instant game changer and had our characters come face to face with Darth Vader for the first time and had Ahsoka discover his identity as her master. The rebels being driven off Lothal changed everything that was to come. This was where the massive jump in quality between seasons 1 and 2 became apparent. The stakes were immediately ratcheted up. The rebellion was forced to flee and Lothal was thought to be lost. Darth Vader was imposing and it was made very clear that none of the rebels stood a chance against even just Vader let alone the empire.

Twilight of the apprentice had me reeling for a few day after I watched it for the first time. I couldn’t get what had happened and how it had ended out of my head. How would the ghost crew move forward with this? How far to the dark side will Ezra sink? How will Kanan fight now that he is blinded? Was this the end for Ahsoka Tano? The second season finale is some of my favorite Star Wars content period. The long awaited confrontation between Ahsoka and Darth Vader, Maul’s return, Kanan being blinded, and much more. The final lines between Ahsoka and Vader with Ahsoka saying she won’t leave him again and Vader responding with “Then you will die” showing just how far gone he was and that he truly was no longer the caring person Ahsoka once knew, but a bitter empty husk. Everything was phenomenal in this two part finale. I think twilight of the apprentice is in a way comparable to the empire strikes back in that the good guys didn’t really win in the end. Both Maul and Vader lived, kanan is now blind, and nobody knew what happened to Ahsoka with heavy implications that she was dead (later proven wrong). There wasn’t a rebel victory. In a way this finale was truly the beginning of all the trials that would come for both the rebellion and the ghost crew. I still get excited every time I revisit it even knowing how everything pans out. This is the moment that cemented rebels as one of my personal favorite cartoons.

The third season premiere “steps into shadow” was another strong two part opening. Ezra’s struggle with the dark side and Kanan and Ezra reconnecting after Kanan distances himself were series highlights for me. The scene where Kanan tells Ezra to let go and trust him was emotionally resonant and showed that despite Ezra’s anger and frustration on the inside he was still a scared kid that just wanted to do what was right and got in over his head. While Twilight of the Apprentice got me really interested in Ezra as a character and where Dave Filoni wanted him to go these were the episodes that really got me to start liking him, kind of ironically I’ll admit. I do think they should have taken Ezra’s foray into the dark side further, but I’m happy with how they executed it in these two episodes.

The third season finale “Zero Hour” was a thrilling conclusion to the season and saw many things come to fruition. Thrawn was an incredibly threatening and capable villain. His capability and smarts weren’t undermined in his loss because his plan would have worked if his subordinate obeyed and the Bendu wasn’t on Atollon, which are both things Thrawn could not have predicted. He still gets incredibly close to wiping out the rebellion despite both of these and still survives and has the manpower to threaten the rebellion again. It goes to show the rebellion that they aren’t ready for full out war with the empire because they are outnumbered, outmanned, and outgunned with almost no advantages save their unpredictability which can only get them so far. Seeing the rebellion so close to being completely wiped out rattled me. I had forgotten how bleak the fight looked for the rebels and how many casualties had occurred.

The season 4 opener is meant to show a victory after the near destruction of the rebellion that ended last season showing that there is still hope for the rebellion. I really liked seeing Sabine leading with the darksaber and her finally being able to confront her mistake and destroy her creation once and for all. Bo-Katan’s return was exciting. I always enjoy seeing characters from other star wars media appear in rebels. Bo-Katan being the influence Sabine needs to ultimately do the right thing and getting the darksaber afterwards to lead Mandalore felt fitting as someone who has seen the clone wars.

The season 4 finale is once again emotional and tense. It’s incredibly fitting that the ghost crew’s journey together began on Lothal and ends on Lothal. Everything comes full circle and Ezra and the pergil are able to free Lothal and defeat Thrawn, but him and Thrawn are jettisoned away on a star destroyer not to be heard from. The moment where Hera is desperately trying to come up with a plan and Ezra and Sabine just look at each other and nod before she gives him an opening to escape made me emotional on a rewatch and was when I realized how much I loved these characters. The series goes out on a bittersweet note showing the liberation from the empire, but also the losses the ghost crew faced and their trouble moving on from them. It’s filled with both hope and melancholy and is easily the second best episode behind twilight of the apprentice. The lingering shot of the painting of the ghost crew was cathartic and touching. Even after everything that has happened they will always remember each other and never forget their journey that we got to be a part of.

 Seasons:

 Star wars rebels has a shaky first season, but I do think is was fairly solid. It did a pretty good job of introducing us to the personalities of the members of the ghost crew and established right out of the gate what the show would be about and what to expect. We knew that this would be about the start of the rebellion against the empire and we would get to see the rebellion grow in manpower, resources, and influence. It dropped a lot of hints of what is to come and what has already happened in our character’s past. The first season’s problems mostly stem from their struggle with the main character Ezra and trying to be a lighter toned but serious star wars story. The show didn’t really know what to do with Ezra in the first season and seemed to struggle to find their footing with him. I personally didn’t really like or connect to Ezra until much later in the series, which is a problem considering he’s the main character. The lighter tone was also a problem because it restricted what the show could do greatly considering this show is supposed to chronicle the beginning of the Rebellion that is seen in A New Hope and that period of time was a dark time for the galaxy with the empire ruling tyrannically. When the show went darker like when Kanan was captured and it dealt with loss the show was enjoyable, but there were a lot of light hearted episodes that didn’t seem to push the show forward in this first season that kept it from being better.

 There is a massive jump in quality between the first and second seasons. The second season starts off with the introduction of Darth Vader and the Empire's “siege of Lothal”. It does a much better job with the tone and keeps it fairly consistent throughout the season. They also utilize the characters much better with many more of the episodes focusing on characters outside of Ezra and giving them backstory. It introduces a lot of familiar faces, like Rex, that don’t feel forced and that I was really happy to see once again. Kanan, Hera, and Zeb got their moments to shine and got a lot of development. This season started Kallus’ redemption arc and the episode that it begins in is a standout. I appreciated that it delved into trying to show how imperial soldiers must feel, their perspective, and the idea that they too cannot be seen as a faceless mass but instead individuals where not all are beyond redemption. The show keeps its momentum and produces Twilight of the Apprentice, which is some of my absolute favorite star wars content. I already gushed about it above so I won’t go into huge detail, but it did so much right and changed the status quo of rebels forever. This season started strong and ended strong and showed just what this show could give.

 Season 3 was an even stronger overall season than the last. This is where I really started liking Ezra. Once again even more focus is put on the supporting cast and Ezra isn’t really forced into a main role in storylines that aren’t about him. Sabine finally gets her backstory revealed in two really strong episodes Trials of the Darksaber and Legacy of Mandalore. I wish they had explored Sabine a bit more in earlier seasons, but the quality and strength of these episodes make the wait worth it to me. Kallus and Thrawn were probably the highlights of the season for me though. Kallus became an incredibly interesting character and the setup for his disillusionment with the empire and potential redemption were paid off wonderfully. I love his arc and liked that it allowed the show to have an episode from the imperial perspective. Thrawn was a fantastic villain every time he manipulated what happened and made deductions I found myself thrilled and actually cheering. I wanted our rebels to come out on top eventually, but I was enjoying what they were doing with Thrawn too much to want him defeated in this season.

 The show seemed to be given less and less limitations on what it could do the longer it went on and it gradually got darker with each season. This season was the darkest with Kanan’s onscreen death, Ezra’s ambiguous fate, and multiple onscreen deaths of supporting characters. This season was the one I felt was the strongest. The stretch of episodes from Rebel Assault to Family Reunion - and Farewell was easily the strongest string of episode in the show. I was consistently on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen. Kanan’s death was what I consider to be the biggest emotional gut punch of the show. I loved that we got to see each of the ghost crew members deal with their grief in different ways. Seeing Hera have a crisis of faith in the fight she has unwaveringly fought for this entire time made me emotional and I realized how attached I was to these characters because I understood how they felt and wanted them to be happy and get the victory they deserved. The series started on Lothal and ended on Lothal with the ghost crew finally freeing the planet from imperial grasp. I was happy that they finally got the victory they strove for since the beginning. In the end I was happy to follow the ghost crew through their journey and thought this was a really strong season and note to end the series on.

[snailcomicz]

Protag’s Path

     A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…

Star Wars.TM

The Hundred Years War

Protag’s Path

A little over ninety years ago, the Jedi High Council cast out one Jedi for claiming using the Dark Side of the Force was justified. Outraged, the fallen Jedi retaliated and fought with all of the dark powers and tools they had been acquiring, teaching those they subjugated and those they chose the powers of the Dark Side.

A generation has passed since that first fallen Jedi, but many of those the fallen taught remained firmly convinced in the powers of the Dark Side. They curse the Jedi Order and the Republic alike for denying them that which they feel they are owed.

Recently the Dark Side forces have been slowly losing ground, but the Republic has been confounded at how, around twenty years ago, their opponents sieges suddenly became more effective than ever. They remain entirely unaware of how a single dark Jedi has been unraveling their every attempt to break through contested points along hyperspace routes...

We scroll down to a massive star ship fight above a planet. None of the ships on either side share the distinctive looks of the ships we’ve come to know, although the designs make them look like older prototypes rather than entirely new ships. A small squadron of undamaged ships pops out of hyperspace behind what appears to be a massive blockade, but behind them a small satellite blinks red twice. We follow the route of the signal it sent, leading us past the largest ship in the blockade and several smaller skirmishes to a moderately sized gunner ship. In a room full of monitors, we see the back of a robe position themself in front of the new alert, cast entirely in silhouette by the sharp light. Another alert interrupts the signal from before, announcing “Critical files have been lost due to enemy bombardment. Please reconnect with the core database, or manually input your specifications for a temporary ID.”

You are the Protag, and this is your path.

Born out of a love for the old KotOR style games, an almost insatiable need to worldbuild, and one night I thank the stars my sleeplessly addled brain wrote down what it was thinking about, this writing exercise follows the story of Protag, the person who’s become a -pro- at -tagging- hyperspace routes and has been working for the dark side of the Force for over thirty years. During this first encounter you command a battalion of ships within a greater fleet engaging in a planet wide siege, and get to decide what kind of dark side user you are. You meet your apprentice and your pilot, learn how the game mechanics work, and maybe play around with what talking style you use. At no point during this mission do you get the chance to do something nice or lessen the damage of the battle-

Yet.

You can play through the game without changing anything about this destructive attitude, continuing your dark reign of terror to the Republic and rising to greater and more terrible power. After the first mission, however, you are separated from the rest of your fleet and forced down to a distant planet for repairs. From then on, you can unlock kinder dialogue options, less damaging solutions to problems, and even work to turn away from the dark side entirely.

     Timeline

As mentioned in the title crawl, this game is set at the tail end of the Hundred-Year Darkness, a time relatively unexplored by the SW universe. Thus, every time I’ve said ‘Sith’ in previous posts have been jossed because the Sith didn’t exist yet and I’m going to have to do so much more freaking research about SW for this, because God has cursed me for my hubris and my work is never finished.

I kid, I kid. In setting Portag’s storyline so far back, I don’t have to worry about bumping into either the KotOR or the prequels era of history, and I said I wanted to worldbuild right?

(And if you’re wondering why future characters know nothing about Protag’s story, I’ve got a simple answer for you. Not only was it not a widely talked about point of history by the Mandelorian Wars, but the official record was part of the history lost when Malak destroyed the Dantooine Academy. By the time the prequels rolls around, the story’s lost for good, even if the effects your Protag made are not.)

     Plot routes

DS routes:

Darkest Jedi (embraces DS structure)

Your Protag’s reign of terror holds the galaxy by the throat. You have it all by force, Force or manipulation, only to be cut down by the one that will rule after you. In remaining evil and taking control from others, you forfeited your choice of control over yourself and echo the future Sith-Apprentice tradition. Your Protag may be overly confident or paranoid as hell, but no matter what way you play, you cannot prevent your death by apprentice.

Trapped by the System (makes LS outcomes, but stays in the DS structure)

Your Protag remains within the dark side warmongering culture, but their actions show a reluctance to use the full range of their powers. This is a weakness in your brethren’s eyes, but a saving grace in the eyes of those you help. Your dark side allies turn on you, and you are cut down by their blades, but the end credits show you the positive effects your kinder decisions made on the planets/npcs/situations/companions you nurtured where you could within the structure of evil.

LS routes:

The One who Defected (leaves the DS structure, but still makes DS outcomes)

Your Protag becomes ruthless force user who prescribes to neither the light nor the dark side point of view, and is really only contacted by those who either have the amount of money or the genuine need [depending on how you play] to gain your services. Your companions learn self reliance from you, not trust, and most leave eventually. A few may choose to stay at your protag’s side, if you focused on their needs in game.

Changed for the Better (leaves DS structure and works to make LS outcomes)

Your Protag’s influence has helped re-stabilize several critical situations happening around the galaxy. Organizations as a whole don’t outright trust you, but individuals keep seeking you out, wanting to know how you were strong enough to change. Eventually you realize the ones who seek you out have, by circumstance or decision, been led down dark paths themselves but no one had ever so visibly proven that they could change before. Your companions learn healthy boundaries and trust from you, and even when some of them split off they stay in close contact because they’ve grown fond of you. The war has ended, and it’s time to rebuild.

     Game mechanics

Route exclusive Force rules

The Darkest doesn’t have to worry about the petty concerns of the other routes and are always able to use their Force powers, cunning or strength to the limit. You get to continue growing and evolving their powers without any restrictions and way waste to your enemies, and combat is always fun but a relative breeze. Of course, nobody on the light or dark side trusts you, but that’s not new.

If you are playing the Trapped, as you continue accumulating LS points not only do your dark side allies become more suspicious of you, but your Force powers become less powerful. You’re going to have to find other strategies than just blasting people with your powers, or start acting more evil. If you stay in the land of posturing and evil, it’s not just easier to be a jerk, you lose power you used to have if you don’t.

For the Defector, retaining the dark side points keeps your Force power fully charged, but LS organizations don’t trust you as far as they can throw you. You’ll have to be very convincing everytime you need to face something you can’t handle on your own.

In the Changed route, as you progress in the storyline, you start actively giving up Dark Side Force powers to prove how much you are dedicated to changing. In exchange, you gain other avenues of leveling up and the world around you starts to believe you when you tell them you’ve changed. You also start looking healthier the more you do so, although you never lose the dark side eye scarring.

Midbosses and midcompanions

The basic idea here is to do something interesting and actually logical with the ‘you can only get this character if you do X’ rather than basing it on your gender or such nonsense. When you upgrade your ship’s traveling range you encounter a miniboss that lasts more than one encounter, and a new companion. These are the same two characters in different positions depending on your big choice to stay with the Dark Side or leave and Change, and you will have heard of/interacted with them before you encounter them. With both minibosses, at some point in the fight they get some distance on you and you have to decide if you’re going to pursue them now or wait for a different opportunity. Both choices will have positive and negative consequences further down the line.

Force and forcing

In every route you are able to use the Force and have easy access to a companion who is already trained in the Force [through either Nix or Generek,] but almost everyone else doesn’t use the Force when you meet them. Some of them you can’t train in the Force at all, but following and furthering some of the Force dynamics found in KotOR 2, some of you companions can be manipulated to developing Force abilities but shouldn’t for their own health and wellbeing. They give you plenty of signs that this forcing them to use the Force is not a good idea and you can back off before any damage is done, but continuing to push gives you more fighting power at your companion’s expense.

     Protag

Fourties or older, to reinforce that they’re supposed to be set in their ways. They’ve figured out how to survive and live their life, and they can either go along with what they’ve always done which is easy [dark side routes] or they literally have to reframe every way they act which is hard [light side routes]. They are human to convey age and make them instantly relatable. Diverse character possibilities not tied to the pronouns you choose, although if you chose female pronouns the female coded designs queue up in front of the male coded designs and vice versa. Inventor of the hyperspace tagging system, but you get to decide what that means (you stole idea from another, others had different parts but you put all the parts together, you literally invented the satellites used, etc.)

     Companions

Mariah, Twi’lek Pilot. (She/Her, lesbian romance): Purple skin with darker stripes, wears a variation of a male smuggler’s outfit that exposes as little skin as possible. Outright willingly works for you as a dark side commander from the start, thanks to the money you generate for her and your willingness to let her get away with stealing historical artifacts from any places you raid.

If you ignore her needs, she slowly sinks further into the dark side mindset, losing any care for anyone’s wishes aside from her own and yours. If you tend to her needs, she slowly becomes more open with you and defends your actions.

D0-C9, Utility Droid. (He/him): Looks like someone took a small moving box size metal container, put way too many interfaces and wires on it, gave it wheels and called it a day. Mariah’s copilot, unusually advanced utility droid, and ship cook. His comments show some scraps of concern for Mariah’s emotional condition during the adventure, but outwardly he never seems to show much concern for you or others in your party.

The Droid cannot go against Protag’s orders and he sees no reason to, so his influence is based entirely on how well you treat him and Mariah in particular, and all companions in general.

Runscor, Klatooinian Mechanic.(He/Him, gay romance): Light reddish/brown skin, imposingly large and muscled but tries to slump in compensation for it. Quiet, passive, and often overlooked for how quality a mechanic he is. 

If you tear down his opinion when he tries to suggest kinder actions, he folds at the drop of a hat and digs further into his passive nature. If you encourage his kinder suggestions, he can become your greatest reality-tester.

FK-42, Protocol Droid? (They/Them): Humanoid, sets of eyes on both sides of their head, seems to have anti-sand protection all over. They only say “Valanka”, relying on context cues for all other communication. They are extremely manipulative and unpredictable but if you’re smart, you can harness whatever they’re Cain they’re raising to your advantage.

Their ulterior motives are utterly indecipherable, but they seem to want something? Or someone??? They’re influenced when you try to help them locate whatever it/they are, and you lose influence anytime you try to outright stop what they’re doing.

     Mid boss/companion

Nix, Trandoshan Sith. (She/her): Grey scales with fading brown patterns, no scars aside from the Sith eye scarring (unusual for Sith), tall and stocky. She is always docile and agreeable in her interactions with you, which contradicts her background actions of testing your limits and jockeying for a higher position behind your back.

Dark routes companion: You interacted with her on planet 0 as she’s your apprentice, but lost contact during what happened afterwards until you upgraded your ship. As soon as you land on a farther planet she regains contact with you, and after a mission or so she rejoins your party to resume her apprenticeship under you.

Her constant background pushing back against your decisions do come from some underlying needs, if you ignore these needs she becomes even more subtle in her actions and clearly begins plotting your demise. If you address her underlying concerns she backs off, but it only makes what happens in the end harder.

Light routes midboss: On planet 0 you interact with her as your apprentice, and she does not take lightly to you shifting sides. Your turning has made other Sith question her allegiance, and if she can take you out she can salvage some of her reputation. She uses the Force to the limit, and during the fight she makes a massive cave-in which endangers your allies. You can pursue her immediately and leave them to their fate, or wait for a different opportunity to take a shot at her and let her wreak havoc until you find that chance.

Jonni, Human Bounty Hunter. (She/Her): Dark brown skin, visibly prosthetic eye right arm and both legs, clothes leaning on cowboy-esque while still fitting the time period. One of the better known individuals fighting against the dark side forces, she is oddly accepting of slave and working class defectors. She is known for focusing a good portion of her time in a fight minimizing innocent casualties, and slaughtering those who shows no mercy.

Dark routes midboss: Mariah shows you some recorded transmissions involving her to update you on the opposition before you encounter her firsthand. In the first encounter Jonni tries to lead you away from bystanders, and whether you let her lead you away or you manipulate/wound/kill bystanders determines how hard her following fights will be. She’s a highly mobile opponent, leading it to be believable when you’ve both exchanged some hits for her to get away. You can pursue her immediately during a critical moment in whatever mission you came to this planet for, or wait for a different opportunity to take her out which will let her rally her forces with new intel specifically on you.

Light routes companion: She is first among the big Republic figures to acknowledge your efforts to change, even though she doesn’t excuse your past atrocities. Initially she’s of the talking heads on the Comm Link who updates on ‘official’ missions, but she joins your party when your ship capacity expands to check in on more distant planets. (But you also suspect to keep an eye on you after the first Nix encounter).

If you don’t mind civilian casualties she becomes more commanding and distant, and will not be available as a companion on some missions as she tries to minimize the damage both the enemy and you might cause. If you do account for protecting innocents, she becomes vocally supportive of you and easily handles whatever attitude you choose to have.

Zeth, Human Mercenary. (He/Him, pan romance): Asian heritage, with several battle scars and one massive claw mark tearing through part of his left ear. He looks like a mixed martial artist, with bulk and muscles made for strength not looks, and wears battle armor at all times. He is initially aggressive towards you, but surprisingly kind and non combative towards your allies. In the DS routes you hire him directly for his mercenary services, and he will show up with more chances for recruitment for a couple planets if you don’t recruit him immediately. In LS routes he seeks you out, angry and desperate to know why you changed. It becomes clear he wants to change too, but isn’t sure it’s possible so he’s seeing if you’ll break when pushed. If you don’t find a way to recruit him during this encounter, he goes on his merry way and you never hear from him again. 

If you teach him that kindness and mercy are weaknesses to be crushed, he slowly loses his kindness for your companions, focusing solely on keeping you happy, himself alive, and otherwise it’s every being for themself. If you teach him how to handle what he’s done in the past while continuing to value kindness and mercy, he slowly mellows out towards you and through struggling through some of his issues becomes even better friends with your companions.

Gerevek, Dresellian Jedi. (They/them): Mid range yellow skin, red eyes with pupils, very short. Well kept clothes that can change from highly informal to passing for a formal meeting, and hide how much armor they are wearing. They primarily “fight” by making temporary political allegiances among planets during battles, but your tactics have been outmaneuvering them and they are nowhere near as good in a one on one fight. In DS routes, you can break their spirit by making the allies they counted on turn away in fear of you. They will only give you one chance to recruit them when this happens, as they have no belief left in their old outlook but don’t know how to submit to the Dark Side ideology. In LS routes, they insist on joining Jonni in checking on other planets, but it’s pretty blatantly obvious they’re actually keeping an eye on you. They will literally follow you for a few planets if you try to refuse, pulling in minor favors and trying to get your companions to put in a good word for them with varying success depending on the person.

They are an interesting case for gaining influence, as you have to be willing to take the opposite tac of communication than you usually do to show you’re willing to bend to what other people need. If you’re blunt and to the point you have to be more indirect, if you’re sarcastic and deflect emotions you have to show some sincerity, if you’re manipulative and obscure your motives you have to be blunt and to the point, etc. 

Saiga, Bothan Shopkeeper. (She/Her, bi romance): Black fur with brown streaks, grey eyes and tall. Well worn pastel clothes, carries massive rucksack with them everywhere, yes even in combat. Endlessly, stubbornly cheerful and has no problem with your sordid past. Sees you as a fulcrum to get her more power, but also does look after your interests. Perk of using this final companion is, as a shopkeeper herself, she can haggle down prices of any shop you come by.

If you view your mutual relationship as an even transaction she’ll easily oblige, returning every favor you do for her and staying relatively static throughout the game no matter what good or bad things you do. If you invest more in the relationship than can be divided by favors she slowly starts giving more as well, for good or ill.

This post is the foundation I will be using as I continue working on this project, and I’m super excited to keep building up this idea!

[ashaywalker-author]

Natural Instinct - Chapter 5 (Poe Dameron/Reader Fic)

SUMMARY: For being a desert planet, Jakku gets kriffing cold at night. And how do Reader and Poe deal with the cold? That's right: cuddles.

WARNINGS: Cotton candy fluff, some strong language

PAIRING: Poe Dameron/Reader

A/N: The fluff is real, bitches. On another note, 11 MORE DAYS UNTIL THE LAST JEDI!!!!!!!!!! Have you ever been so excited for something you feel like you're going to barf up your intestines? That is me.

CHAPTER INDEX: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 

5 – WARMTH

It was the middle of the night, at least five hours into darkness, before Poe and I finally reached the pinnacle of exhaustion. The setting sun had taken all the warmth from the landscape, and a world that had once been hot and dry became frigid. Jakku’s climate was one of extremes, and the horrible cold was wearing us down just as fast as its opposite.

“We need rest,” I told Poe, whose teeth had begun to clack.

His once soft face had begun to grow small, thick tendrils of stubble, and the ones below his nose were freezing, tiny icicles at the tips.

“I’m afraid to stop moving,” he admitted, his hands shoved into his armpits for warmth. He had uttered at least five times since sunset how he regretted taking of his jacket when he entered the TIE Fighter cockpit.

“The parachute is pretty well insulated,” I said. “We’ll dig another crater in the sand, for a safe measure and a bit of added heat.”

“I doubt I’ll be able to stop shivering long enough to sleep.”

“You have to try,” I said sternly, slipping the knapsack off my shoulder and beginning to unravel it. “Like I said, we need to rest at some point, and we’re better off sleeping at night than in the day. If we pass out while the sun is high, the heat will drain our bodies of all water reserves. When you wake up, you’ll hallucinate until you die; that is if you aren’t picked off by birds first.”

“Kriffing hell,” Poe said, following my lead to unpack his minimal supplies. We had already drained one water bottle during our trek, but I kept the other safe and deeply buried in my pack. We were practically carrying empty packs, but I would be damned if I got rid of the parachute. “Why do you still live on this force-forsaken planet?”

I didn’t answer immediately, finding that there wasn’t an immediate response that felt like an actual reason. My first thought was that it was just because I had always lived here and I was familiar with it, but that wasn’t really the case. The second was that I had built a small communion of friends and acquaintances, but I doubt they would miss me much, or I them.

Still thinking on it, I began creating our little sleeping pit, the sand dragging beneath my nails as I fought to keep my muscles from seizing up in the cold. Poe was on his knees beside me to help, and I wondered whether his question was rhetorical. I found, however, that I wanted to know the answer for myself.

“Things might not be ideal here,” I finally replied, scraping away and pushing aside handfuls of dirt. “But I figure they could be worse somewhere else. I’m one girl with no family left and enough talents to count on one hand. I have no skill at flying, not the faintest clue how to even begin learning. The only thing I’m truly adept at is surviving, because it’s all that’s ever been required. I’m afraid I’d be on the run in a galaxy I don’t understand.”

Poe took his time with his next words as the crater deepened, the sand beneath emanating the smallest increase of heat that felt holy against our fingers.

“You limit yourself,” he said.

“Even I know what happens to orphan girls who try to flee from their roots. It’s all trouble, some of it worse than others, but none of it I want to take my chances with.”

“Maybe you just need to meet the right people,” Poe said, and when I looked up, I saw him staring directly at me.

I stopped digging. I wanted him to elaborate, but he didn’t.

Allowing my frustration to ebb with time and activity, we set up camp. One half of the parachute beneath, the other atop, we curled between them, keeping the water bottle—still warm from the day—pressed between our bodies. Poe was right; there was nothing easy about falling asleep. Both of us had the top chute tucked around us as tightly as we possibly could, and when we couldn’t stand it any longer, we ducked beneath it, finding the idea of suffocating much more appealing than keeping our heads outside. Still our teeth chattered, and our toes turned to ice in our boots. My back was beginning to ache with how hard I was shivering. So. Shitting. Cold.

“I’m beginning to hate Luke Skywalker.”

I flipped onto my other side gingerly, to keep my half of the parachute tucked in. Poe had his arms out of the sleeves and folded against his chest on the inside of his shirt. The visual was almost comical, and if I had the lung capacity to laugh without coughing to death, I would have.

“Why?” I said.

“I’m only here because the asshole disappeared.”

“You’re calling a war hero an asshole?”

“Right now? Absolutely.”

I did laugh a little at that, and by a little I mean breathily. Poe somehow managed to smile himself.

“Promise not to hit me.” He said suddenly.

“Why?”

“I’m about to suggest something,” he explained, as vaguely as possible, of course. “But before I do you have to promise not to hit me.”

I arched an eyebrow. “Okay?”

A pause, and then: “I think we should strip.”

I felt the shock on my face before I could stop it. For someone who had marked herself as good as survival, I had subconsciously erased that off my checklist. But… I mean… of course I had. I wasn’t going to suggest to this man—one I barely knew and who was without a doubt incredibly attractive—that we share body heat. I had only ever seen one man naked before. The night had been only several after news of my father’s death; I was lonely, and had shot down three cans of Knockback Nectar. There had been an unfamiliar face there: a man who called himself Dreckan, an experienced traveler and scientist from the Republic, sent to different planets to collect biological samples for research on something or other. He’d been handsome enough; dark-haired, tan, well-kempt and chivalrous, with the whitest smile I had ever seen. For some odd reason, he had taken a liking to me as well, and we found ourselves stumbling up the stairs above Ergel’s bar, sloppy in our kisses and our fondling. Looking back, I know I had been searching for something to help me forget my loss, to take me as far away from miners and Cratertown as possible. He had felt like a blessing sent just for my sake.

Unfortunately, idiot that I was, I had panicked when he undressed himself. I’d taken a moment to gawk, of course, at how clean he looked, his body soft and yet hard in all the right places. But that didn’t stop me from running half-naked out of the bar and back to my outpost.

“(Y/N)?” Poe asked, his face a shock of uncertainty. He looked so worried that his shivering had reduced to almost nothing.

“I’m sorry,” I said quickly. “I’m just… it’s not an unreasonable request, not at all. You just took me by surprise.”

“I was worried I had offended you or something.”

“No,” I insisted, a little louder than necessary.

“Okay… good.” I saw him bite that lower lip of his again; it was a quirk I was beginning to associate with him, although it seemed to show up in a variety of situations. “Well?”

I didn’t answer. Words themselves felt more awkward than actions, so I just started removing articles of clothing. The space was tight, making me feel even more inexperienced and embarrassed. My shirt caught on my chin and I nearly squeaked when I felt Poe’s fingers reach out to wiggle it past my jawline.

Soon enough, our clothes mingled together within the bubble. I kept my bra and underwear on, not wanting to go that far, and I couldn’t help the briefest shoot of my eyes downward on Poe’s hips where I saw a clothing band. From then on, I forced my gaze to stay up, despite how tempting the line of dark hair slipping down beneath his underwear was. Before I could break my resolve, I turned my back to Poe, feeling a bit more secure that way. It was already warmer within our makeshift bed, whether it was just me or the actual air, I wasn’t sure.

Nothing was said between us, but then Poe wiggled his way forward. I tried to keep my breath even, really, I did, but when his chest touched my back, my heart raced uncontrollably. And when he put his arm around me, I swore it could have exploded.

“Too much?” Poe asked, gentle, soft lips grazing my ear.

I shook my head.

When time passed and the touch we shared turned from surprising to familiar, I felt myself relax into it. He was so, so warm. The arm around me was heavy in a comforting, secure way, especially with the even way he began to breathe as our bodies shared heat. All of the sudden, I was greedy for more contact. Quickly—before I could overthink it—I took his forearm and curled it into me further. His hand clutched around the shoulder furthest from him and I delved the cold tip of my nose against his skin, inhaling all the musk we had carried with us from the First Order to the desert, not caring how it smelled. Poe made a move of his own, sneaking one knee in between mine so that his cold toes curled into the arch of my feet. I shivered.

“Better?” Poe asked after a moment of silence.

“Way better.”

And I realized, in all my life, even out in the desert wilderness with only instincts and a parachute as a blanket, I had never felt so safe.

[swfanficbyjz]

SW AU - Fate of the Master Chapter 3

<- Previous Chapter

Ahsoka curled herself into a fetal position on the cold metal floor of the cell that Vader had dragged her back to. She was exhausted. How long had he been torturing her? How much time had passed? Her head pounded, her vision was blurry. What has he turned you into? She thought. Every system in her body felt off. She tried to reach for the force to find some peace only to draw back as a sharp pain rippled through her skull. Drifting in and out of consciousness, she had no real recollection of any information he might have gotten from her. She hoped her friends were safe, especially Rex. He'd survived too much, to die by the hands of his general. But Anakin wasn't his general anymore. She wasn't sure what he was.

She felt numb. As if nothing in her life had any purpose anymore. She'd fought so hard during the clone wars, believing that every battle brought the Republic closer to victory; that every victory would save countless lives. After the Jedi purge, she'd struggled to find footing and meaning, until she'd stumbled along people she could help. To face the true outcome in the eyes of every person she met had made the conflict in the galaxy so much more real to her than slicing in half countless battle droids. It had been hard for her to swallow that there really was no victory in war. There was victory in battle, but not war. Battles could swing one way or another depending who out powered who. Anakin, her, Rex and the rest of torrent company, had constantly shifted the tide against all odds. But as she looked back on all of it now... what had been the point? The Republic had fallen. The war lost. So many innocent people lost homes, lost loved ones, lost beliefs... lost everything. And the Jedi were just as much responsible for that as the separatists were; for engaging in the war. For becoming agents of destruction rather than remaining the peacekeepers they'd sworn to be. Republic or Separatist victory, it didn't matter; the people still lost.

Her cheeks burned with shame. She'd had to make sense of what had happened through tidbits of news from a variety of sources. But no matter how much she'd pieced together, it still didn't make much sense. She'd been on Mandalore when the war came crashing down. There had been no warning, just a desperate fight to survive. The rumors that had flown around her had been too much to bear; the Jedi accused of treason and sentenced to death for attempting to overthrow the chancellor, the clones turning on their Jedi generals, then worse, claiming they'd had no control over their actions. Rex had later confirmed the rumors about chips in their heads. But, hadn't the Jedi supposedly been the ones to commission the clones’ creation? Why would they stick something in their head to make their ally turn against them? She may have had many disagreements with the council, but she could not believe they would purposely construct such a grand plot, especially at such a horrendous cost. Normally, she'd have easily blamed the separatists. But the separatists hadn't really won either. The droids had been shut down, count Dooku had been killed, along with Grievous... and rising in the place of the Republic and the Separatist alliance, was this new entity that no one could have predicted. Whatever had happened had been bigger than either side. And nothing really made sense to her anymore. Were they all just pawns? She'd left the Jedi order feeling as though she'd been one for them. But maybe all the Jedi, and all the Sith, the clones, Grievous, Ventress, Dooku, Vader... maybe they'd all been pawns. And we all played our game of sabacc, right into the Emperor's hands. 

Ahsoka rolled onto her stomach and tried to push up from the ground with shaky arms. She could feel that Vader was gone. Now was her chance. She wanted truth, and she was going to find it. She clenched her jaw through the residual pain as she reached into the force for her lightsabers. She'd watched Anakin throw his and control it, even turn it on and off without holding it; but he never knew that she had learned how too. She could feel them now, calling to her from the box in the other room. She manipulated the force and ignited them, slowly spinning them until they cut through their container. With her other hand, she removed the top of the box and then reached with invisible force to pull them towards her until she could hear them humming outside the cell door. She twisted them in her mind so they cut a rectangular hole in the bars. The bars fell free with loud clanging that echoed up and down the hallway.

She stood, catching the lightsabers in her hands, feeling a bit more in control now. Their familiar weight felt good. She slipped through the hole she'd just cut and sprinted down the hallway. Her bones ached, her muscles screamed at her. But she didn't know how long he would be gone or how long it would take to find the answers she sought. She wished she could just ask him but even Anakin had been difficult to get answers out of, Vader would probably be even worse, that was, IF he even let her stay conscious enough to ask questions.

She sprinted through the fortress unsure exactly what she was looking for, but letting her instincts guide her. Keeping her ears open for the droid, or droids, she investigated as much of the place as she could. It didn't appear to be too well defended, but then again, Anakin had always been good at upgrading seemingly useless things. Who knew what traps awaited her? But as she searched for hours, she encountered no resistance. Could Vader truly be that complacent? Or that confident that no one would dare sneak into his home? Or just like before when he hadn't disarmed her, was he allowing her to escape? It seemed unlikely considering how much time and effort he'd put into torturing her, that he'd just want her to get up and walk out the door. It's almost as though he keeps giving her the chance to change her mind about being here.

Finally, she stumbled upon what must be his personal chambers. It was sparse, no decorations, minimal furnishings. Simple, necessities. A bacta tank in the center, a chair, a holoterminal and spare parts for his suit. She entered the room cautiously. When nothing jumped out of the shadows at her, she headed for the suit pieces. Discarded to one side was the top half of his helmet that she'd sliced a hole in. She picked it up as memories washed through her of their duel.

            There was so much pain! To discover that the monster before her had once been her master. Someone so devoted to others he'd risked everything for them. She'd always believed he'd died a hero during the Jedi purge, she never could have imagined him joining the very evil he had fought every day of his life. That one yellow eye, no longer blue; no longer soft, and loving. Hearing his voice, raspy but distinct. She remembered the way it had felt when she'd first suspected it could be him; the horror, the shame, the denial. Anakin was good, he'd always been good. Good people don't turn evil. At least not without good reason. She sat cross legged on the floor, hugging the broken helmet to her, as tears rolled down her cheeks. "What happened to you, Anakin? Why wasn't I there to save you? I should've had your back, just like you always had mine! But no, I walked away. I was selfish! I thought only of myself! I was so blinded by the burning pain of betrayal, I couldn't stand with you or with the Jedi, after everything they'd done to me."

            She set the helmet aside and picked up the vest of another suit. She looked it over, tracing her fingers around the edges. The material was stiff and heavy, but strong. She fiddled with the buttons on the front trying different combinations, wondering what they did. She heard a release of air and looked down inside the neck hole to understand how the breathing system worked. Her senses started getting fuzzy. The room spun for just a moment and then straightened out. She shook her head. She must still be tired from all the torture she'd endured. She looked around, feeling angry suddenly. She wanted to smash something, destroy someone.

            She stood up, whipping out her lightsabers; hate raging through her veins. She swung her lightsabers deftly at nothing... paused... and then suddenly it dawned on her. She picked the suit up again and pressed the last combo until the air from it came in a steady stream. She sniffed it, hatred rising up in her again. Anger, red, burning... she wanted revenge! For everything they'd done to her! They deserved to be punished! No... they deserved to die! Her lips snarled, and she raced from the room, bent on destroying them. 

            She was several hallways away when the anger faded. She'd been right, he was being poisoned! She crept back to the room and force shut off the suit as she held her other hand over her nose and mouth. She waved at the air in front of her trying to clear the gas from the room. Now that she was aware of its presence, the smell of it was unmistakable. It definitely wasn't pure oxygen. She could feel a residual tickle of anger as if it danced across her skin; ready to penetrate at any moment. She made her way to the bacta tank and turned on the life support connected to it as well. Sure enough, she smelled the gas in it too. She shut it off just as quickly and ran out of the room. It was making her weak. She had no idea what kind of substance it could be, but it seemed to have an effect on her ability to connect to the force as well. To be sure, there was one more test she had to try. If this gas did what she suspected, Anakin had literally been forced to inhale it for years. In such a concentrated state, it was hardly surprising that Vader was winning the fight. It obviously wasn't a high enough dosage to be lethal, but it was enough to keep him in a heightened, stress response state. No wonder he permeated anger and hate. Every apparatus required for him to breathe was laced with the stuff. But how to get him away from it without killing him? That was the question... it probably had an addictive quality as well, something he'd experience withdrawal from, not to mention, it would keep him resistant to help unless he was knocked unconscious and taken to a place that had untampered life support. 

            Well... she thought, time to find out what it really does. She went back to the bacta tank, turned on the life support, and slipped the mask over her head, inhaling deeply several times. She could feel something changing in her.

 ----

 Vader landed the TIE fighter back on Mustafar. The mission hadn't been quite as successful as he'd hoped, but it at least bruised the rebels for a bit. He'd gotten to knock a few imperial heads around too. That had been a highlight. It was time to report to Sidious the status of the mission. He dreaded it, knowing he'd also ask whether Vader had finished Skywalker's apprentice.

            He headed straight for his holoterminal but then felt compelled to turn towards the cell blocks to check on his prisoner. Perhaps she'd died while he was gone and he wouldn't have to report yet another failure. He nearly passed the torture room without a thought but then paused and looked inside. The room had been ransacked! Everything in it had been sliced to bits, everything except the wooden box he'd put her lightsabers in. It was still sitting in the corner where he'd left it, and appeared to still be locked. What the kriff? He approached it somewhat cautiously and went to lift the lid, the whole top half had been split with surgeon-like precision. But there inside, still sat her lightsabers. He grabbed them both in one hand and quickly made it to the cell. On the floor by her cell were parts of the cell bars, sliced up just like the torture room. So she couldn't take it then? She escaped. Good riddance... but why would she put her lightsabers back and leave them behind?

           He approached the cell slowly, but stiffened when he realized she was still there. Through the hole she'd cut in the bars, she sat with her back to him, cross legged. Power emanated from her, but it felt wrong like it was tainted. He was more confused by the minute.

            "Are you proud of me, master?" She broke the silence without even moving. "You wouldn't let me join you, so I absorbed all the anger and hatred from this place so I can be just like you!" He stared at her in disbelief. 

            "What is wrong with you?" He spat out. A million things going through his mind. 

            She stood up and spun around with her arms out. "Isn't it wonderful? Now we can be together again! Train me master! Train me in the ways of the dark side!" 

            He took a step back. 

            "Why do you fear me?" She hissed, her blue eyes squinting in anger. She pulled the lightsabers from his hand, ignited them and raced at him. He barely got his up in time. They clashed furiously, building momentum as they made their way out into the open foyer. Her offensive strikes could have been lethal, but they were unrefined. She seemed stronger in combat, but chaotic in the force. She no longer possessed the calm she'd had on their trip here. 

            She flipped backward, pushing off the wall and sailing over his head, landing gracefully behind him. He barely had time to turn around before he felt his feet lifted off the ground. He couldn't breathe, as a crushing weight clamped down on his neck and chest. His eyes widened at the realization that she was the one performing the force choke hold on him. Had he taught her that?

            Trying not to panic, he focused on force gripping her outstretched arm. She howled in pain, her chokehold loosened enough for him to break free. He swung his lightsaber at her and she flipped backwards; it missed her by a hair. She ducked under his swing, spun around slashing low, forcing him to jump to miss the strike. He brought his blow down hard and she had to use both lightsabers to block it. She pushed him back and rolled to the side, flipping her lightsabers in her hands back to her reverse grip. She then lunged forward at him spinning around with such momentum he had to leap backwards. They matched blow for blow as they fought their way around the fortress, each trying to gain the upper hand. That shouldn't be possible. He could feel the hatred raging in her. Lashing out at him for all that he had done. He realized at some point, that he may not win this fight. 

            On Malachor, she'd never given in to her true potential. She'd been skilled and far more focused than when he'd last seen her fight, but without passion there had been a void in her abilities that he'd easily exploited. She hadn't wanted to kill him. And... he hadn't really wanted to kill her... they'd both held back. At least, he could tell they had. To anyone else, it probably looked like they were fighting for their lives. The two of them had always been intense fighters. But he knew Ahsoka, he knew how she fought. He knew her state of mind and her focus when she fought and this wasn't her. He had challenged her and pushed her harder than Obi wan had ever pushed him. The unadulterated power that such a little creature could possess would make her a powerful ally of the emperor. But with the Sith, there could only be two. He couldn't take her as his apprentice as long as he had a master. And if his master took her on, he would be killed.

He threw his own rage into the fight. He had not lost everything just to be replaced. He would not let it crumble down on him. She had to die. It was the only way. 

 ----

 Ahsoka fought ferociously, letting the gas pollute her mind. She knew he could take it. She didn't feel like herself, but she also didn't feel more powerful either. All the chemical seemed to do in her brain was aggravate her emotions and resolve. It didn't seem to increase her force power. If anything, it was harder and harder for her to call on the force. The emotions blinded her to it. She could still feel its power and presence, she just couldn't find the calm or the light in it. So this was what it was like to be Vader? Kept in a constant state of frenzy, unable to reach for the only thing that could save you. This was the dark side then. 

            But just as she suspected, it hadn't taken away her ability to think clearly. It had just amplified the negative emotions until she was teetering on the brink; willing and ready to give into the pain, and its power over her. It focused all her actions through the lens of pure hatred. She'd been through so much in her life, but rage had never been her outlet. Not like it had been for Anakin. She'd always managed to clamp it down, to cry or to withdraw. And he had never made her feel ashamed of her feelings. The rest of the Jedi told her constantly to control them. She had become good at focusing them into action and intention, but never unleashing them. Never letting them win over clarity. But there was a clarity to this rage. A clear picture of what you're fighting and what is your enemy. 

            To test her theory, she'd given in to the anger she'd felt at the Jedi and their betrayal of her. She'd given in to the fear of the future, of herself. She'd given in to the pain of all her heartbreaks and mourning. Of all the losses and suffering and death. She took it out on the black suited monster in front of her as if he was solely responsible for every injustice she'd ever experienced in her life. And suddenly she understood. Anakin had been a slave as a child. Anakin had been forced to put his own will aside for another's gain. First his owner, then the Jedi, and now the Emperor. The difference was, now he was given the option to channel it into a purpose rather than to deny it. She'd wanted the truth, and now she had it; Vader was Anakin. Vader was the version of Anakin that he'd never been allowed to release. Not completely anyways. And because he'd never been given permission to unleash it, it had built up until it was now all consuming. Bariss Offee had been right; it was wrong for the Jedi not to show emotion.

            She didn't want to believe that they could be the same person. It hurt more than any physical wound ever could. People who had only ever been his friend were now seen just as guilty as the ones that had hurt him. Maybe they all had hurt him in their own ways. Maybe long term exposure to pain with no relief, caused it to blur all together until that's all anything really was; pain, pain and more pain. Even love could be perceived as pain. And pain led to anger, anger led to hate and hate led to suffering…

            She dropped her lightsabers suddenly, just as he swung back to build momentum to strike again. Sensing her sudden weakness, he pushed her back with the force. She flew back into the wall of the fortress so hard she felt several things crack inside her. She slumped to the ground, gritting her teeth to the sharp pain radiating from her back. His looming form blocked out the light. He held his ignited lightsaber over her and she knew the fight wasn't over. She didn't want to finish it.

                "I submit to you," she whispered. The strength fading from her voice. "I submit." She repeated weakly as the edges of her vision grew dark. "Kill me, Anakin. Release your pain, free... yourself..."

Next chapter ->

[cutshoe15-blog]

Resistance is a kid-friendly glimpse at the grimy underbelly of the Star Wars universe

Photo: Lucasfilm (Disney Channel)

It takes a few minutes of post-viewing reflection for the most radical thing about Star Wars Resistance to set in: no Jedi. There’s not one laser sword on display in the new Disney Channel series, no evidence of magical powers. Nobody tells anybody to use the Force, or even mentions that quasi-mystical energy field. Partly, that’s a function of the series’ setting, taking place as it does in the last months before The Force Awakens, when Luke Skywalker has already given up teaching and taken up his hermetic, milk-guzzling vigil on Ahch-To. But it’s also a philosophical distinction: Like 2016’s Rogue One, this is a story about the gritty edges of the Star Wars universe, and the people who don’t have a bunch of space-wizard powers or prophesied destinies watching their backs.

B

Starring

Christopher Sean, Bobby Moynihan, Suzie McGrath, Scott Lawrence, Myrna Velasco, Josh Brener

Format

Half-hour action-adventure; two-part pilot watched for review

Admittedly, our new hero, rookie New Republic pilot Kaz Xiono (Christopher Sean), isn’t entirely without special privileges. As the son of a prominent senator, he’s been unhappily handed everything he has on a silver platter, which is why he jumps at the chance—courtesy of Resistance ace, spymaster, and certified blockbuster movie character Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac)—to join the titular “extremists” and make a difference that doesn’t require his father’s influence. That need to prove himself helps Kaz break free from the typical fast-talking goofball kids’ hero mold he’d otherwise fall into, giving him a concrete psychological reason to stick his neck out for the Resistance. And if he’s a little too whiny, a little too cocky, and a lot too obsessed with his daddy issues, well, what franchise did you think you were checking into?

Under Poe’s only-here-for-the-pilot guidance (delivered with the worst voice work in the first episodes; Oscar Isaac sounds like he’s wearily reading his way through an Extended Universe audiobook), Kaz ends up on the Colossus, a racing-obsessed fueling station situated way out on a galactic backwater. There he’s tasked with sniffing around for evidence that the Imperial remnants of the First Order are planning some kind of attack on the Republic, yet another in a series of doomed goals handed off to the protagonists of one of these Star Wars interquel projects. (As the last scene of the two-part pilot makes clear, Starkiller Base is already close to ready to doing its ersatz Death Star duty.) Meanwhile, Kaz infiltrates the day-to-day life of Colossus in the least unobtrusive way possible, pissing off most of its colorful alien inhabitants, and getting himself locked into a potentially lethal air race with perkily condescending competitor Torra Doza (Myrna Velasco).

Said air race (and a legitimately kickass space battle that opens the series) are the biggest arguments in favor of the show’s striking, potentially divisive art style, a radical departure from the more traditional 3D animation Lucasfilm used on series like The Clone Wars and Rebels. Glossy, heavily shaded, and just a little bit blocky, the show’s look lends itself beautifully to scenes in motion, giving racing vehicles and X-wings a sense of movement and weight that sells the excitement of the moment. It doesn’t fare too badly with terrestrial action either—an early bar brawl is another visual high point—but struggles more in static scenes, where the eye is sometimes drawn to the vast, flat expanses of the characters’ faces. Worse, the detail-light luminosity sometimes undercuts the show’s storytelling: Colossus is supposed to feel grimy, oily, and claustrophobic, but it’s hard to buy it when everything looks bathed in a soft, white-shaded glow.

The writing, at least, helps pick up the slack. Although the series is populated with a handful of stock cartoon archetypes—especially alien sidekick Neeku (Josh Brener), who seems to exist mostly to cause cheerful complications and have “comedic” over-literal misunderstandings that’d have Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Data rolling his synthetic eyes—it also reveals itself as being full of welcome little nuances. As with Kaz’s troubled relationship with his dad, every major character—from begrudging mentor Yeager (Scott Lawrence) to fiery mechanic Tam (Suzie McGrath), and even to the brightly irritating Neeku—all have just enough hints of inner lives and motivations to keep the plot’s occasional clichés from feeling out-and-out trite. Heck, even the lesson Kaz learns at the end of the pilot, about sacrificing personal glory for long-term benefit, is presented as a begrudging acceptance of reality, rather than some “Here’s what I learned today” epiphany.

Image: Lucasfilm (Disney Channel)

At the end of its first hour, Resistance feels pleasantly primed with potential. Not necessarily for the deep dive into the origins of the First Order—or the relationship between the Republic and its black sheep Resistance—that canon hounds might have wanted from a show set during this period. This is still a kids’ series first and foremost, albeit one that takes its storytelling responsibilities seriously. But as an examination of what day-to-day life looks like out on the fringes of the galaxy, it has a lot to offer. In the past, Star Wars has only ever given us brief glimpses of what it’s like to pass through any given hive of scum and villainy (even one that’s been sanitized for kids’ TV). Resistance seems ready to give the little guy his shot, and for a franchise that’s always loved an underdog, it’s an idea that arrives with a lot of force.

Source: https://tv.avclub.com/resistance-is-a-kid-friendly-glimpse-at-the-grimy-under-1829513368

[aion-rsa]

Star Wars: Best Lando Stories That Could Influence a Disney+ TV Series

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Hello, what have we here? Thanks to Solo: A Star Wars Story and the pitch-perfect casting of Donald Glover as the coolest con man in the galaxy, not to mention Billy Dee Williams’ return to the character in The Rise of Skywalker, Lando Calrissian is back in a big way! And while the future of Glover’s Lando is still a bit murky after Solo‘s tepid reception, there has been no end to the rumors that the actor might get to reprise his role in a follow-up TV series on Disney+. Unfortunately, nothing about a potential Lando TV series has been confirmed thus far by Disney or Lucasfilm, and inquiries by Den of Geek have gone unanswered.

But that doesn’t mean we don’t have a Lando void in our lives to fill. With that in mind, we present a short but fun reading list featuring the original owner of the Millennium Falcon, the man who brought back capes as a fashion accessory, and the gambler who took down the second Death Star (with the help of Wedge Antilles and Nien Nunb) – Lando Calrissian!

Let’s take a look…and maybe some of these stories could end up influencing the Lando Disney+ TV series if that ends up actually being a thing that’s happening.

Marvel’s Star Wars #56-57 (1981) – Legends

Released just months after The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars #56-57 was the very first original Lando Calrissian Expanded Universe story. And by the maker’s bristling beard, what a creative team! The great David Michelinie, Louise Jones (before she was Simonson), and the man himself, Walt Simonson, all fleshing out the stories of not only Lando but the residents of Bespin as well.

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TV

Star Wars: What We’d Like to See in a Lando TV series

By Megan Crouse

In this two-part story, Lando and his new Rebel pals go up against the con man’s reprogrammed cyborg pal, Lobot, to stop some Ugnaunt machinations. That’s right, I said Ugnaunt machinations, and I’m not sorry. These issues feature Lando at his scheming best as he must save his bald cyborg buddy and regain control of Bespin from the Empire.

Any deep dive into Lando Calrissian has to begin with these two issues because this was the first non-film take on the scoundrel and they feature some of comics’ best visionaries in a story that really fleshes out Cloud City.

Read the Classic Marvel Star Wars comics on Amazon!

Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu – Legends

Yes, folks, Lando starred in his own trilogy of novels in 1983, which shows just how much of a splash the character had made post-Empire. These novels served to flesh out the character for fans who loved his victory run during the Battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi just a few months before.

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Movies

Solo: A Star Wars Story Easter Eggs and Reference Guide

By John Saavedra

Think about it, Luke didn’t have his own novels but Lando (and Han) did! Perhaps the more literary-minded Star Wars fans favored the scoundrels? Anyway, Lando having his own series was a pretty big deal because in the bygone days of 1983, there weren’t too many prominent sci-fi series featuring a Black hero.

Written by L. Neil Smith, The Lando Calrissian Adventures were filled with fast-paced pulpy goodness. These books were flashbacks to when Lando was captain of the Millennium Falcon and before he became the administrator of Cloud City. Actually, it will be interesting to compare these EU adventures to what we’re going to get in Solo.

In Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu, which might be the pulpiest title ever, Lando tries to con his way into a treasure horde as big as a star system. The plot is a bit sparse to be honest, but Smith nails the Lando character, as the future big man of Cloud City tries to strike it rich.

And sure, this may technically be a Legends story, but Donald Glover’s Lando namedrops it in Solo: A Star Wars Story so…maybe it’s canon after all?

Buy Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu on Amazon.

Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon – Legends

Okay, nope: Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon is the pulpiest book title ever. Did I mention that Lando’s companion in these novels is a five-armed droid named Vuffi Raa? Kinda makes you wonder about Lando’s droid companion in Solo, doesn’t it?

Anyway, in Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon, Lando travels to a star system that caters to immoral gamblers and scoundrels. Smith really has Lando’s cadence down in this one. Overall, the novel reads like an early eighties attempt at a sci-fi Rat Pack film.

In fact, just make this season one of the Disney+ show.

Buy Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon on Amazon.

Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of ThonBoka – Legends 

Oh wow, the title Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of ThonBoka is just transcendent. ThonBoka!

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Movies

Star Wars: Colin Trevorrow Reflects on ‘Traumatic’ Episode IX Ousting

By Kirsten Howard

In the final Lando novel, Smith has his titular mustached hero and Vuffi Raa race to save an alien species in danger of extinction. This unusually altruistic act brings the pair into renewed conflict with the baddie from Mindharp of Sharu – Rokur Gepta, the Sorcerer of Tund! That’s right, I said the Sorceror of Tund! Doesn’t really have the same ring as “Dark Lord of the Sith,” but it’s still pretty awesome.

And thus, with Starcave of ThonBoka, Lando’s OG EU adventures came to an end. But what a ride! Mindharps, Flamewinds, Starcaves, capes, and mustaches… What’s not to love? One has to wonder why there was no Lobot love in these books. No disrespect meant to Vuffi Raa.

Buy Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of ThonBoka on Amazon.

Lando: Double or Nothing – Canon

A prequel comic that leads into the events of Solo: A Star Wars Story, Lando: Double or Nothing follows the con man on his own adventures before meeting Han Solo. In a sense, the five-part comic series seeks to recreate the feeling of Smith’s Legends Lando Calrissian Adventures, as Lando takes a job that puts him on a high-stakes collision course with the Empire.

When Lando finds himself in major debt, he has no choice but to take on a job from freedom fighter Kristiss, who hires “the greatest smuggler in the galaxy” to transport weapons to people enslaved by the Empire on the planet Kullgroon.

This isn’t the kind of job the self-interested Lando is usually up for and the story does a great job of showing that there is more to the con man than just credits. He secretly has a bit of a heart. By the end of the story, we start to see the beginnings of Lando as a revolutionary ready to take on the Empire.

Lando’s Luck – Canon

While not exactly essential Lando reading, the middle-grade novel Lando’s Luck by Justina Ireland is still a whole lot of fun. Like Lando: Double or Nothing, this novel is another standalone adventure set before the events of Solo.

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Movies

New Star Wars Movie Trilogy Delayed

By John Saavedra

When Lando is arrested for smuggling on the planet Hynestia, he has no choice but to accept another smuggling mission in exchange for his freedom. The planet’s queen orders him to bring a sacred artifact, the Solstice Globe, to the Empire, but when the truth behind the mysterious orb is revealed, things get a lot more complicated. Were Lando to complete his mission, it could destroy an entire planet!

Big stakes, fun supporting characters, and a whole lot of L3 quips later, Lando’s Luck is one of the best new canon Lando stories to date.

Marvel’s Lando – Canon

But the Lobot love is on display 32 years later in the Disney era! In 2015, Lando Calrissian returned to the pages of Marvel Comics in this awesome miniseries by Charles Soule and Alex Maleev.

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TV

How Star Wars: The Bad Batch Could Continue Echo’s Story from The Clone Wars

By Megan Crouse

Set in the days before Lando became Baron Administrator of Cloud City, Lando and Lobot set out to steal a valuable pleasure cruiser filled with invaluable intel and treasure. Too bad for Lando that the ship belongs to Emperor Palpatine. Ooops.

High adventure follows as Lando must pay a terrible price for his actions. Marvel’s Lando redefines the character for the new Disney canon and serves as a perfect bridge between the character’s appearance in Solo and The Empire Strikes Back.

Read Marvel’s Lando on Amazon.

Last Shot – Canon

If you loved the dynamic between Han and Lando in Solo, there’s plenty more where that came from in the novel Last Shot by Daniel Jose Older. Set both before the Original Trilogy and after Return of the Jedi, the book explores the evolving relationship between the two smugglers and how their friendship is still complicated even after fighting alongside each other against the Empire.

The book is broken up into four different storylines, each exploring a different adventure that ties back to Han and Lando in some way. There’s even an L3 chapter!

Most intriguingly, the book shows Han and Lando’s lives have changed with the rise of the New Republic. No longer part of a ragtag group of freedom fighters, this duo of scoundrels is now spending more of their time in committee meetings than in sketchy cantinas in the Outer Rim. But when the chance for a new adventure comes knocking, Han and Lando answer the call!

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