#salek

Oh, God, it's her. The woman of the red mountains is standing right in front of him. Her blue eyes dart from him to Spock as he explains the direness of their situation. Ani doesn’t focus on Spock’s words, instead, he chooses to stare at the woman. She’s there, she's real. His… vision isn't completely a figment of his imagination. Then Spock does something that shocks Ani. He calls the woman of the red mountains mother. Mother, she is Spock’s mother. Of course, how could he not see it, feel it? The connection is so clear now. Could this mean the woman of the desert could be his mother?

Ani has no time to dwell on the implications of the women in his dreams. They need to go now. Ani watches as Spock’s mother takes Spock's hand into hers and they all begin to run. Falling debris and rock rain sudden death around them, if they aren’t quick enough they will all die.

“Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go. Move your feet!” Ani cries in an authoritative tone.

Ani stays towards the back of the group to ensure as many of the elders run towards the small entryway as possible. Ani can see some of them are eyeing him wearily. He knows it's because he’s loud for a telepath and he doesn’t know how to properly shield his emotions. It can be quite discerning for anyone who doesn't understand the complexities of Ani’s unusual power. It doesn’t matter, he lets their critical and curious eyes roll off his back like water. There are more important things to worry about. Ani chooses to focus on getting the Vulcan elders to safety.

At the rate and speed, they are going, however, not many of them will survive the falling rocks. Hell, they’ll be lucky if they can make it out of this cave alive.

As the thought crosses his mind a statue of a Vulcan begins to fracture and fall on an unassuming elder. If something isn’t done their lives will end here and now.

“We're all going to die,” Ani whispers horrifically, eyes wide.

It can’t end like this, not when there are so many people who need to be rescued. There is more to their story than it ending in a cave on a dying planet. He has to be able to do more! Something, anything!

Then a power, ancient and ethereal, swells from within Ani from a blocked source. Light and darkness begin their interplay within his very soul. Which would he choose to rectify their situation? Serenity or passion, emotion or peace, chaos or harmony, which would he choose? The Lightside or the Darkside.

Suddenly a calmness came over him, a gentleness he had forgotten filled him from a place previously locked away. Someone calls him.

…Ani, trust in the will of the Force, it will guide you…

There is serenity yet passion.

Ignorance yet knowledge.

Emotion yet peace.

Chaos yet harmony.

Trust in the will of the Force.

Ani takes a deep breath, centers himself in the eye of the overflow of feelings, lifts his hands towards the collapsing ceiling, and pushes up.

I am one with the Force and the Force is with me.

A deafening silence fills the room as the rocks stop falling and begin to float lazily in the air. All of the Vulcans turned to look at Ani with wide eyes. Ani can feel their disbelief prickle against his skin and taste it on his tongue, it tastes bitter. Whoever said Vulcans don’t have emotions is a kriffing liar.

“Y-you know this isn’t as easy as it looks, get it in gear. I can-can’t hold these rocks for much—gah—longer!” Ani growls, struggling to keep the rocks above their heads as sweat begins to gather on his skin.

Thankfully, the Vulcans are a very smart species and didn’t need to be told twice to start running again.

*******

Somehow, by some miracle, they all made it out of the cave alive. They must have been in that cave for five, maybe ten minutes, but the world outside their cave had changed so much. The ancient red mountains that had stood for millions of years were crumbling like dry clay. The ground trembled and rumbled under their feet. The winds whipped wildly. And the sky thundered angrily. It was like they had stepped into his dream.

“Enterprise, we are waiting for transport,” Spock calls into his communicator.

“I am trying to lock on your location. Don’t move, don’t move!” Chekov replies.

Ani can hear in the young Russian prodigy's voice worry and concern. He might not be able to get them off the planet in time. The planet's atmosphere is so volatile and hostile now, it would be a wonder if the Enterprise can catch their life signatures in the lightning storms.

Ani scans the group. He can acutely feel the Vulcans’ anger, sadness, and disbelief. All of their power and intellect and they could do nothing to save their ancestral planet.

Spock's mother was standing so close to the edge of the cliffs, mouth open and gasping for breath. Her disbelief and horror were palpable in the air and sizzled on his skin like a burn. Ani wishes he could provide some level of comfort to her, to all of them. Deep in the locked recesses of his mind, he understands the pain of displacement and of knowing he could never go back home and back to how things were. How can he voice his understanding of the pain they must be experiencing?

Instead, he reaches for the woman hoping his touch can convey what he is feeling, what he wishes to say. Then the familiar humming of the transporter beam fills the air and the energy beams wrapped their bodies in its field. In the sudden flurry of activity and sound, a thunderous cracking noise was almost completely drowned out.

Spock’s mother turned around, eyes filled with the same regret and deep burning love as in his dream. “Spock!” She called out, desperate and afraid.

“Mother.” Spock cried.

She had heard the noise, the cracking was happening under her feet. She realized she was going to fall. Spock realized it too. She was going to die.

Not if Ani had anything to say about it. With the last of his strength, Ani used the pull of his power, of his…Force and reached out to her. She reached back and their fingers almost touched when the rock began to splinter from the cliff.

She screamed. She was falling.

Spock yelled and began to vanish.

Ani called forth more power and fell to his knees. Did he tug on something, a hand maybe? Yes! Pointed manicured nails dug into his unprotected skin. Their bodies slammed together, both gasping for breath. She was shaking and sobbing in his hold, afraid. Ani was crying too but he was more relieved than anything else. As they vanished, Ani hid his face in the folds of her headscarf with tears spilling from his eyes and down his dirty face.

He had done it.

His vision hadn’t come to pass.

He saved her.

She wasn’t going to die today and hopefully she would live for a long time to come.

*************

“I lost her.” Ani heard Chekov say mournfully.

“Umm, Chekov… I think you need to check again.” Jim corrected.

Ani felt the air in the transport room change from mournful to shock. The only sounds in the room were the sniffles coming from Spock’s mother and himself. No one could believe what they were seeing. There, on the landing pad in the transporter room were Ani and Spock’s mother cradled in each other’s arms, safe and alive.

“Amanda.” Ani heard someone call in quiet relief.

“Mother,” Spock whispered just as relieved.

Amanda, now Ani had a name. The woman of the mountains and Spock’s mother had a name and it was Amanda. Happiness and utter relief washed over Ani like purifying water. He had saved her along with all of the other Vulcans hiding away in that cave. He had done something good and right in this dark situation. He didn’t allow his fear and anger to cloud his judgment as they had so many times in the past. His body and soul felt so light. It felt so good!

Ani scanned her face while she wiped the tears from her eyes. She was beautiful and elegant despite being covered in red dust. He can see a little bit of Spock in her, the shape of her eyes, the curve of her lips, and their aura was similar. Her eyes flitted back and forth, confused.

“Wh—where…,” She gasped.

Ani slowly extracted himself from the shaking woman—from Amanda and smiled. “It’s okay now, you're safe and on the Enterprise,” Ani whispered, a face-splitting smile on his lips.

The Vulcan who Ani assumed to be her husband and Spock kneeled on either side of her and placed a hand on her shoulders. She gasped, her blue eyes blowing wide with shock as she suddenly came out of her daze. She whipped around with a cry.

“Sarek, Spock thank goodness you’re alright!” Amanda sobbed and embraced the two Vulcans.

In a very un-Vulcan-like manner, they embraced each other tightly. Their feelings of relief and love filled the air. Ani smiled sadly, a feeling of longing grew within him.

Are there people out there who would feel just as relieved to see him again? Are there people out there who missed him, who loved him, and who wanted him home again? Ani hoped so.

The images of a dark-haired angel, a handsome red-haired man, a girl with big blue eyes, identical brothers, and the woman of the desert flashed in his mind.

Yeah, Ani hopes people were waiting for him.

“Thank you, Mr. Skywalker, for saving my mother and helping to rescue these elders. Vulcan and I owe you a debt of gratitude we may never repay.” Spock said as he stood with his mother in his arms.

“Truly,” Amanda began, “I would have fallen to my death and the elders would have been crushed by falling debris had you not provided us with assistance.”

Ani shook his head and began to rise, “It was nothing really, I was just doing what anyone would have done—“ Ani paused and froze where he kneeled.

Suddenly, billions of voices cried out as one. Their fear, confusion, anger, and death cries flooded the universe and crashed in on him like a wave. It overwhelmed him. He was drowning in a sea of dark despair.

Ani gripped his head, pulling at his hair as if he could physically remove the intrusive thoughts. His flimsy mental shields fractured like glass, and their cries entered his unprotected mind.

Help us.

Save us.

Why?!

Why is this happening to us?!

We are all going to die.

Save us, please, someone, anyone! A billion voices called out in anguish.

Ani screamed and fell to the ground convulsing. Then everything went black.

******

In a galaxy far, far, away, a high general, a lost former padawan togruta, and a dark lord wake from a restless night’s sleep and to the sudden awakening of a bond that was thought to be dead.

Through the bond, billions of voices weaved together in a horrific cacophony of fear, anger, confusion, and anguish.

Help us.

Save us.

Why?!

Why is this happening to us?!

We are all going to die.

Save us, please, someone, anyone!

Help them, please don’t let them all die! A familiar voice wept.

“ANAKIN!” The general and padawan cry out in pain.