—even parrots him with the name of revenge, Ashv’cezh.

The harsh curves of Vuhlkansu soothe him, unexpectedly, awakening something old, something long buried, the shred of darkness that he was told by the weathered tongues of Jedi Masters to contain.

Did they know?

Spock had often wondered this. If they had seen the red edge of his katra, tainted by this boundless thing inside him, amoral, untamable, without control. Years of meditation and punishing training would have him suppress it, to snuff it out. Slowly, agonizingly, it suffocates under a veneer.

He wonder if Anakin senses it, now.

“ Many Vulcans have since looked away from them. Though, we forget nothing. ” He explains, speaking to Anakin with the same passivity his entire species has been renowned for.

Despite Spock’s detachment from Vulcan, as is the will of the Jedi Order, he remembers, thinks again to ancient times, to the stories his father told him in the spare time of his youth. His people had banished them, scores of gods and insects, forbidding even the Force from the wildest forms of their ideology.

Beware of temptation, it was said to him, and then his mother died — was stolen from him — and Spock left to Coruscant on a fulcrum, teetering on the delicate balance of logic and tenuous, tedious emotion. He comments on it with careful ambiguity, “ The future is difficult to capture when it is always moving. Master Yoda insists on this. It is our history that informs us forward. ”

Slipping out from under Anakin’s solidifying touch, Spock encourages Anakin to lead them out, “ Let us will locate Rako Hardeen. ”

Time is the Jedi’s only obstacle. But within Anakin’s armored anger, Spock can at least be certain of one thing: there is nowhere Kenobi’s murderer will manage to allude him.

“ Once this matter is sufficiently handled, we can see about this debt. ”

anakin  is  unexpectantly  pleased  by  spock's  response.  despite  how  passive  it  fell  from  his  tongue,  anakin  latched  onto  the  possibility  of  it.  it  would  be  illogical  ( he  heard  it  spoken  in  spock's  resigned  tone  all  the  same )  to  forget  their  history,  lest  they  were  doomed  to  repeat  it.  still,  there  was  a  question  left  unanswered, expertly avoided by a practiced man.  he  knew  vulcans  that  turned  from  their  history  at  the  behest  of  the  order,  but  surely  not  all  of  them  embraced  moving  forward.  surely  remembering  it  would  dwell,  would  beckon  those  still  submerged  in  an  old  culture  back.  not all were satisfied with the order's codes.

anakin  would  argue  the  fabrics  of  their  history  were  often  sewed  into  them,  too,  and  such  a  primal  instinct  existed  to  revert  back  to  what  they  were  made  of.  for  anakin,  it  was  the  molded,  unfair  rage  raised  in  him  that  he  was  a  slave  boy  left  to  orders  and  expectations  far  too  large  for  his  understanding.

those  expectations  still  followed - grating, now, that he actually understood them.  he  could  hear  the  masters  in  his  head  warning  him  of  revenge.  louder,  louder,  until  his  fingers  rubbed  at  his  eyes.

he  only  paused,  briefly,  to  consider  spock's  next  string  of  words.  "i  have  seen  the  future,"  he  commented  vaguely,  sucked  into  the  reverie  of  his  nightmares.  the  death  of  all  that  he  loved  repeated  back  to  him  in  color  that  would  not  fade  even  with  his  eyes  closed.  "lets  hope  it  changes.  it  will  for  hardeen  soon enough."

he  only  hoped  other  change  would  follow. that it wouldn't be padme or ahsoka's deaths he ached over.

"the good news is that hardeen  has  more  pride  than  he  does  brains,"  anakin  started,  his  robe  a  billowing  flutter  never  able  to  catch  up  to  his  step.  "he's  still  on  coruscant.  i've  narrowed  it  down  to  two  different  cantinas  on  the  lower  levels  -  the  hot  spots  scum  like  that  typically  stay.  i  used  to..."

         The  hyenas  circled  with  a  steady  cadence;         experience  dictating  their  steady  claws   &   ravenous  maws.        Blessed  with  uncanny  clairvoyance  they  awaited  for  the  lingering  dregs  of  life  to  expire.        Trapped  amidst  this  spiral  of  predator   &   prey  ,     Krennic’s  avenues  of  survival  dwindled  with  each  passing  moment.        Of  all  the  possibilities  he  imagined  ,     his  present  circumstances  was  buried  deep  within  the  annals.        Never  could  he  pondered  that  his  greatest  nightmare  bore  fruit  instead.        As  with  Icarus  who  plummeted  to  his  doom   ⸻   he  too  paralleled  a  kinship  of  fate.

         He  knew  that  Scarif  ,     in  its  aftermath  ,     was  a  CATALYST for  his  destiny;        and  that  Tarkin  would  seize  the  opportunity  for  his  own  use.        How  true   those  fears  were.        Krennic  awoke  from  his  comatose  state  to  a  galaxy  on  fire.         Barely  had  his  injuries  closed  when  they  dragged  him  to  a  ceaseless  parade  of  humiliation  before  the  tribunal.        Tightened  bandages  ,     aching  limbs   ⸻   HE SEETHED WITH SHARPENED RAGE AS THE KANGAROO COURT ENSUED.        Doctored  footages   &   false  testimonies  hammered  the  final  nail  into  his  coffin.        Tarkin’s  ‘mercy’  stripped  bare  decades  of  accolades   &   accomplishments  in  exchange  for  early  ‘retirement’  to  civilian  life.     

         Little  did  he  realise  that  this  was  but  a  penultimate  of  the  Grand  Moff’s  greater  scheme. 

         Now  ,     he  ended  here;         facing  down  the  durasteel  barrel  of  a  blaster.        Attached  to  it  was  its  owner  ,     a  female  Rodian  dressed  to  the  brim  in  protective  armour.        Onyx  eyes  stared  unflinching  as  she  waited  for  his  next  move.        A  low  ,     amused  chuckle  emanated  as  the  former  Imperial  mustered  what  little  strength  he  had  to  tackle  her  weapon.        It  ended  with  a  swift  kick  to  his  abdomen  before  she  connected  the  attack  with  an  elbow  directed  squarely  to  his  nose.        There  was  a  loud  crack   &   Krennic  ended  on  the  floor  once  more;        heaving  to  catch  his  breath.        His  hand  rested  over  the  still-injured  flesh  ,     certain  that  the  wounds  had  reopened.  

he  could  sense  the  ensuing  clash  within  the  force  -  his  birthright  quaking  with  the  rodian  and  bounty's  exchange  of  blows.  exhaustion,  anticipation,  a  sloppy  pursuit;  anakin  remained  back  just  far  enough  to  assess  the  intentions  before  him.  to  taste  signatures  that  swirled  with  fury.  only  when  the  target  fell  to  the  ground,  clutching  a  wound  he  could  smell  the  iron-blood  from,  did  anakin  drop  from  his  advantage.  he  expected  the  bounty  hunter  to  perceive  him  first,  only  managing  to  withhold  his  impressed  tilt  of  lips  when  it  was  the  man's  eyes  that  found  him.  anakin  reached  for  the  blaster  clipped  to  his  side,  vaguely  wishing  it  was  a  saber  instead.

'I  thought  you  worked  alone.'

anakin's  blaster  shot  once,  the  heady  scent  of  plasma  permeating  his  nostrils.  the  rodian  fell  before  she  could  even  gasp  in  shock,  before  she  could  even  turn  her  weapon  on  him  instead.  "we  do,"  anakin  supplied  helpfully,  the  barrel  mimicked  the  former  hunter's  as  it  aimed  for  the  imperial  traitor.  anakin  kicked  at  the  body  of  the  rodian  woman,  though  he  could  detect  the  living  force  escaping  her  slump  figure.  "i  have  to  admit,  taking  you  in  would  set  me  up  for  what  remains  of  my  life."

it  would  be  logical.  expected.  who  wasn't  tempted  by  a  life  of  luxury  in  a  galaxy  that  only  offered  it  to  a  few?  especially now ⸻ especially now. the  blaster  moved  forward,  pressing  properly  against  skin  now, anakin following the pulse in his temple.  dead  or  alive.  dead  or  alive.  he  could  end  it  here.  .  .  and  yet.  "an  imperial  traitor  like  yourself  must  have  really  messed  up if they tagged on that credit amount.  and  one  able  to  walk  free  despite  that.  .  .  ?"

or  as  free  as  one  can  be  with  an  entire  guild  of  hunters  sniffing  around.  they left him for dead either way. anakin  let  the  blaster  fall  to  his  side,  offering  a  gloved  hand  in  its  place.  if  the  traitor  repeated  his  action,  he  might  reconsider,  but  anakin  argued  then  at  least  he  would  deserve  it.  "i  would  hurry,  if  i  were  you."

Hera hadn’t intended this errand to end up as a rescue mission, but when she sees a ship in trouble when coming back to Lothal, she doesn’t think twice before trying to free it from the destroyer’s tractor beam. 

The Ghost is as invisible to the Empire as it always is — she’s scrambled its signature to match one of a TIE fighter, minus the visual. She’s coming back to her new home from a routine mission looking for parts, and was not expecting to fight anyone this day.

But, well, she’s not about to let the other get itself trapped when she can help it. 

She announces herself after shooting at the destroyer in an attempt to damage it.

❝ Ghost to freighter, d’you need help over there? ❞

"no,  that  wasn't  me  -  "  he  told  artoo,  who  quickly  questioned  where  the  new  burst  of  fire  power  was  coming  from.  truthfully, he thought he was alone out here. either  way,  he  couldn't  say  he  wasn't  appreciative with  the  cruiser  honing  in  far  too  close  for  comfort.  his  curiosity  was  sated  as  soon  as  a  transmission  scrambled  through  his  communicator,  however,  anakin  adjusting  the  reception  so  the  message  was  less  a  warbled  jumble.

d'you  need  help  over  there?  the  pilot  asked,  and  anakin's  lips  turned  up  when  a  plan  kicked into motion.  quickly,  he  turned  his  channel  on,  honing  in  on  the  ship  so  boldly  barreling  towards  the  arrestor  cruiser.  "azure  angel  to  ghost.  .  . "  he  thought  they  said  ghost,  at  least.  "cruiser  has  initiated  tractor  beam.  not  much  time  left  before  we're  too  caught  up  to  escape.  keep  shooting.  .  .  you'll  draw  out  their  TIEs.  have  you  ever  pulled  off  a  covert  shroud  maneuver?"

" if i were joking, skywalker, you would know, " he gestures once more to the seat before him where a steaming mug of tea waits, " it will put you more at ease. master yoda did not get to where he is by only drinking caf, you know. "

a pause as he studies anakin carefully.

" have you been drinking water? you're looking like an unwatered house plant, my friend. "

he  knew  when  to  accept  defeat  -  sometimes  -  and  though  anakin  could  certainly  get  out  of  what  it  was  that  master  sol  wanted  from  him,  he  was  equally  as  curious  to  see  where  it  went.  "master  yoda  does  more  than  tea  and  caf,  but  you  didn't  hear  that  from  me,"  he  hypothesized,  chilled  hands  wounding  around  the  steaming  cup.  the  spices  reminded  him  of  his  home  planet,  of  tatooine,  and  the  tea  his  mother  would  brew  when  the  binary  suns  would  set  across  the  horizon.  nothing  beat  the  herbal  concoctions  shmi  skywalker  gifted  him  after  watto  worked  his  hands  into  callouses.

Brown eyes met blue as he leaned back to gaze down at her, and her lips puckered every so slightly to kiss the thumb he swept across her bottom lip. She knew she was covered in grime and likely stank to high heaven, and yet here was her darling husband looking at her like she was the most beautiful, priceless treasure in the galaxy. "We've been holed up here for the last three days. It's... well I'm sure you saw the clashing factions warring in the streets. Even if we had brought enough credits with us for a normal refueling, with all of the looting going on, the citizens are panicking. The price of everything has gone up astronomically, and many businesses are refusing to even take Republic credits anymore."

clashing  was  an  understatement,  the  bodies  outside  shoving  against  one  another  and  through  the  glass  of  various  shops.  they  buzzed  like  a  disturbed  hornet's  nest,  only  it  was  bodies  that  littered  the  street  in  their  wake.  he'd  seen  it  before,  the  clone  wars'  effects  reverberating  through  the  galactic  sphere  one  sector  at  a  time.  a  wayward  seismic  charge.  "no  wonder  i  couldn't  get  a  hold  of  you,"  anakin  murmured,  savoring  the  quick  relief  of  finding  her  after  agonizing  for  days.  "the  streets  are  too  dangerous.  the  people  here.  .  .  at  first  i  thought  it  was  separatists,  but  it  doesn't  seem  like  it.  on  the  surface,  at  least."

his  legion  hovered  just  above  the  planet,  awaiting  command,  though  anakin  only  allowed  rex  to  join  him  as  he  scouted  the  ground  first.  landing  on  the  planet  wearing  the  colors  of  the  republic  when  it  may  as  well  get  his men killed was  the  last  obstacle  he  wanted  to  deal  with.  "i  can  secure  your  safe  transfer  to  my  ship.  rex  can  take  you,  but  i  need  to  find  out  who  is  tampering  with  the  tedious  balance  of  takodana."

living in the slums of tatooine, one learns the ins and out and all the places to hide. those on the better side of the law, shopkeepers and mechanics and politicians forget about those they use and look down upon. so even if they're being chased by men far bigger than they are, they know more about the winding streets and alleyways.

cobb isn't paying much attention to anything other than shouts behind them until anakin pulls him down a narrow break in the buildings. back pressed against the wall, arms around anakin in the tight space, he has to bite his lip to keep from laughing at the men run by their hiding spot.

anakin  knew  tatooine  like  the  layout  of  his  own  palm.  the  winding  paths  were  his  playground,  anakin  recalling  years  as  a  child  and  slave  carrying  out  watto's  dirty  work.  he  was  a  kid  shielded  by  innocence,  and  though  he  wasn't  aware  of  his  force  sensitivity  then,  watto, like his mother,   knew  he  was  special.  it  served  him  well,  now,  as  he  sprinted through  the  populated  markets  and  sent  items  flying  in  his  path.  his  return  to  tatooine  wasn't  meant  to  cause  trouble,  but  anakin  had  a  habit  of  collecting  it  regardless.  even  so,  he  couldn't  help  shake  with  laughter  when  the  rage  of  the  men  chasing  after  him  were  too  blinded  to  see  him  side  step  them  into  an  alleyway.  for  a  brief  moment,  he  considered  allowing  the  man  with  him  to  serve  as  distraction,  but  anakin couldn't  deny  that  the  man  amused  him.

"force  no,"  he  snorted,  trying  to  catch  his  breath.  the  space  was  too  small  for  two  grown  men,  but  it  at  least  provided  shade  from  the  dual  suns  that  beat  down  on  the  hot  sand.  "they're  too  hungry  for  credits  to  pass  up  that  armor  of  yours.  but  -  you're  in  luck  this  time."

anakin  found  vanth's  eyes  with  mischief,  head  jerking  towards  the  helmet  the  man  was  clearly  fond  of.  he managed to steal it back just in the nick of time. "couldn't  give  them  the  satisfaction  when you make it look rather stylish. ought  to  thank  me,  hm?"