STAR WARS: DARK TIDINGS
BY : Desmond Robertson
Prologue: “Escape”
Chaos was unleashed upon the Jedi temple on Coruscant. The Sith had returned in a way none would expect. Chancellor Palpatine was the Sith Lord the Jedi were searching for... however it was too late. Mace Windu had already fallen after a valiant fight against Lord Sidious. None would also expect the betrayal of the Chosen One, Anakin Skywalker. The newly crowned Sith Lord and a battalion of elite clone troopers raided the Jedi Temple.
One by one the Jedi fell. The statues of all the great Jedi were toppled, records were destroyed, even Masters were being defeated. One Jedi ducking, deflecting and dodging blasts from the clones was trying to find his younger brother and other Jedi in the destruction to help them escape. Taking one clone after another, he didn't stop although he was breathing heavily. Using everything as his disposal, he rushed to the rooms the younglings were in, hoping to save the innocent lives. He was the nephew of the now deceased Mace Windu. A tall, dark skinned boy with short, cut black hair. In his eyes, mind and soul the fire of determination flared. He was focused on saving the only family he had left.
But every room was bloody with the bodies of young children lying on the floor. He feared the worse for his brother. He heard lightsaber and blaster sounds coming from the room down the destroyed hallway. Leaping over a fallen pillar, he rushed into the last room to see not only his brother but another young Jedi fighting alongside against five troopers.
“Kill them all!” the clone commander demanded.
“My name is Kael Windu, the only one whose going to die... is you!”
Four of the troopers were taken out, the clone commander stood there with his blaster ready. The young Jedi, Kael Windu, quickly destroyed the weapon and brought the commander to his knees. Kael was furious at the death of so many Jedi and was about to strike the commander down when his brother Desra Windu finally stepped in and blocked his attack.
“We aren't going to go on their level Kael.”
Kael grit his teeth and withdrew his lightsaber, “...after all the death they have caused... after all we did to protect the Republic... THEY TURN ON US!”
Desra Windu hugged his brother and turned to the commander. Desra was also seething in anger but did not strike the commander down but instead put him into a deep sleep using the Force. He turned to the other young Jedi. He was shaking, in shock of so many deaths he felt through the Force.
Kael turned to the young Jedi, “This is Tyrary, we were training together under Master Yoda.”
“Hey Tyrary, it's alright now, we are going to get you to a safe place.”
Tyrary did not speak but followed the brothers out of the room. They rushed through the bloodied, destroyed rooms till they found an airspeeder. Desra made sure the area was clear, the young padawans jumped into the back of the speeder but the older Jedi Knight turned around with his lightsaber at hand.
“Desra, what the heck are you doing?” Kael exclaimed.
His older brother raised his hand, signaling to wait and rushed back into the destroyed temple. He was in search of one last Jedi at the very least that could possibly be alive. Quickly running through the destroyed temple, evading patrol squadrons, looking under every piece of rubble there was.
Nothing… more dead Jedi and clones… but none of was who he was looking for. A sigh of relief came across him but at the same time a sense of urgency. There was no sign of her… his one true love. Jade Sunstrider. He dreaded never to see her again but at the same time he dreaded the thought of seeing her lying dead. He would never forgive himself.
“Not here… She’s not here… damn it…” he slammed his fist against the wall, tears dripping down, head drooped down. He was losing hope. He stood in the center of her wrecked room…looking at the simplistic room still had traces of her presence. Giving up was not an option, death before that would happen he thought. He ignited his lightsaber, clones or no clones he was going to through anything that stood in his way. Trying to control himself from slipping into darkness, he went into the main hall of the Jedi temple where he saw her.
Using the graceful but deadly form of Shien, she stood as a battalion of clone troopers surrounded her. Long, dark hair flowed as the force she wielded surrounded her with immense power. She was tired but determined… she had a strong fighting spirit… stubborn as Desra would attest to. But this fight was impossible regardless of how skilled she was. The graceful knight stood her ground as the blaster fire commenced. One by one the clone troopers fell but more seemed to take the place of the dead increasing the fire power each time. Desra Windu, using the Force to increase his movements, rushed in. He was not about to let her die. As if a cyclone of destruction came upon the clones, they were cut down almost instantly, taken by surprise.
As with few Jedi who were strong In the force, the force was visible with the young knight, swirling around him as if he was standing in the middle of a tornado. He had gripped that lightsaber so tightly it was apart of who he was. But one thing made him loosen his grip. The touch of her soft, fragile hands touched his. Looking back at her, he had never been so joyful. It was because of her, he found the strength to stay on the Light side of the Force.
The familiar smile came across her face as she rushed and hugged him tightly. Kael Windu and Tyrary came running, trying to find Desra. They were all united once more as they rushed together back to the airspeeder in the hangar. They were clueless about what their futures held without the aid of the Jedi Council. So many Jedi across the galaxy laid dead, few got away alive.
They flew across the city of Coruscant looking for a safe hideout until they had some idea of what to do. The holovids across the galaxy played the now new Emperor Palpatine’s vow to destroy the ‘traitors who tried to overthrow the Republic’. The entire galaxy was in disbelief, even those apart of the anti-jediism movement. The Jedi as they knew it were gone. The Republic was now the Galactic Empire. Things did change… but for the worst. The Sith were once more in control of the galaxy and darkness overshadowed those they were in control of.
They rented out an abandoned apartment as credits was little. They planned to use that area as a place of refuge and a base of operations. They were familiar with the ways of military planning and started to devise a way to not only survive but gather other Jedi together that may have survive to create a stronger group. Desra Windu flung a chair at the wall, furious at the betrayal of Palpatine and Anakin Skywalker, the man he admired and aspired to be like.
“This is crazy, how could they… do this?” Desra asked. The others were silently pondering the same question.
Jade looked at him and back at his younger brother Kael and Tyrary, “I don’t know…”
“ It was just yesterday when Master Yoda was making us train together…” Kael said quietly.
Desra paced the floors of the apartment building they rented out. Kael watched his brother, he felt the same pain but knew how to stay calm. Tyrary was still silent although he stopped shaking. The fear was still embedded in him. Jade, a proud woman from , couldn’t help but shed tears for the loss of the Republic, it was what she knew, had a deep loyalty for it and its Senate. The feeling of loss and despair was not as prevalent in most of the galaxy who saw Palpatine and Anakin as heroes. Defeating the Separatists, dealing with the “traitorous” Jedi, and creating a “secure Empire” were the themes. Parades were held on Coruscant who believed that peace and freedom would reign. The wars were over. However, the sinister Emperor had other plans that would soon be realized.
The next day, Kael woke up to find his brother missing. He checked each room, Jade was fast asleep, Tyrary was finally able to go to bed as well after a dramatic night. Kael put on his cloak, lightsaber hidden underneath the garment and went outside to look for his brother but found him just standing outside staring into the sky.
“Bro?” Kael asked quietly, “Are you alright?”
Desra stood there silently for a few minutes before answering, “No… I don’t think I’ll ever be alright after what happened.”
Kael walked from behind him to his side staring into the sky.
“Even our uncle… Master Mace Windu died… one of the most powerful Jedi next to Master Yoda f-fell at the hands of the… Sith…” Desra spoke softly.
Kael knew his brother was not the same goofy kid he was. The Jedi never could make him into a totally serious guy but the Sith did. In comparison with Mace, Desra was also a tall, dark man with hair. One who smiled more than their uncle. A sensitive but strong Jedi knight. Kael on the other hand, was also a tall but of lighter complexion. He was happy padawans, rarely would you see him depressed. Like their uncle, both were skilled with the lightsaber and were known to be one of the best duos of the Jedi Order. There’s was hardly anything that could prevent them from their goal. They’ve fought alongside of the famous heroes of the Clone Wars. Obi-wan, Anakin, Ahsoka, Plo Koon, and many others. Hard to believe they were all gone.
If any were alive, they were going to find them. Determination was the fire in both of their hearts and minds. Looking down the street were two clone troopers asking locals if they had seen any Jedi in the area. They went back inside quickly and woke the others up.
“Time to go Tyr, get your stuff… the clones are coming.” Desra stated as he went into Jade’s room to wake her up.He nudged her, she woke up smiling. Before the anxious Jedi knight could even explain what was going on she kissed him.
“Not the time for that, the clones are coming Jade.”
He stood up and for the first time since the Purge, he cracked a smile before he left the room. Once more they were on the run, they had to escape from Coruscant and find a place unoccupied by the Empire’s forces. Of course, this was easier said then done. They had no money to buy a ship of their own so the only way out was how most fugitives got away… hide in the mist of refugees. Gathering ragged clothes and cloaks, they hurried to the Refugee Sector of Coruscant and boarded a outgoing ship to Rori, a forest moon of Naboo. The ship was pretty packed, smelled like waste and decay. The refugee ships were rarely cleaned out. The refugees were the people who lost everything. Entire families whose way of life was destroyed in the Clone Wars and was looking for some new place to go, to start new lives and forget the horrors that were witnessed.
A little girl was crying in her mother’s arms for something to drink or eat. It had seemed the two had not eaten well. Desra pulled out his last bit of food and gave it to her to eat. She ate without hesistation… she looked back at him with her big, round baby blue eyes and smiled, wiping the tears away.
“What‘s her name?” he asked the mother.
“Kierra, thank you for giving to my little daughter.” she replied
Desra bowed but before he could walk away, Kierra jumped down and run behind him, pulling on his cloak. He looked down and she was there handing him what was left.
“Eat!” she demanded.
He shook his head, “I already ate, that’s for you.”
Truth was he didn’t eat anything that day, that was the last bit of food he had.
Subject: Star Wars: Dark Tidings (Story) 
Mon Mar 22, 2010 5:43 pm
