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Remorseful

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Luke's POV
I couldn't get out of his hold, as much as I hate to admit it, he's stronger than me.

A lot stronger.

As soon as I reached him and he placed his hands on my head, an alarm blared throughout the room and there were loud echoes of it in the hallways as well. It distracted him enough for me to head butt him, thus causing him to loosen his grip and drop me to the floor. He nursed his nose with a groan and I scrambled to my feet as fast as I could before bolting out of the door. I may not be able to overpower him when it comes to the force, but I sure as hell have an advantage when it comes to youth.

I ran as fast as I could, shoving troopers aside and disarming them before they could get out any shots out. I slammed a few into the wall with my body, and stole the gun of another before shooting him in the chest, "Luke!" Vader yelled at the top of his lungs, lights in the hall flickering in response to his rage.

I used the force to grab the soldier standing in my way and flipped him behind me, towards my angry father. I know he was able to get a small glimpse into my head, and it scared me because I don't know exactly what he saw. But I wasn't sticking around to find out only so he could look deeper in.

He waved the trooper out of his way, slamming him into a wall. And these actions went on repeat until I made a quick right, but he was not far behind. I was up in the air in seconds with soldiers entering the hall, "Just let me go!" I thrashed around as he came closer, his steps heavy and filled with authority.

"Who do you have with you?" He demanded to know.

"No one," I answered honestly. I don't have anyone... except Master Yoda, but he would never come here. Not even for me.

He narrowed his amber eyes, not believing me, "Don't play stupid. You purposely got caught because you wanted to distract me so your little friend could get on-board." This narcissist swears he's always right.

"No—" I was going to continue my argument, but the sound of something dropping onto the floor caught everyone's attention. Then, in a matter of seconds, the entire room was filled with thick smoke that made it hard to breathe. And what made it worse is that whoever dropped it in the first place, dropped at least two more, making it impossible to see.

I could hear coughing coming from my Father, while the troopers, who were protected by their helmets, searched for the intruder. The thick smoke clouded their ability to see, so they were going nowhere except into each other and the walls. They were arguing with each other like a couple of teenage boys, while my Father and I continued to cough like our lives depended on it.

One of them bumped into me right as I had pushed myself to my feet, knocking me right back down, "Luke!" My father yelled in search of me, before he began to cough again after another smoke bomb was dropped.

It seems the power he holds can't protect him from everything.

I was trying to crawl away even though I couldn't see through the smoke and my watery eyes, but I knew this was the best chance I had. Moments later after believing I was going to get trampled to death, I felt a pair of hands grab ahold of me, "I'm your eyes kid, let's go and don't trip." A man's voice mumbled into my ear as he pulled me to my feet and led me a specific direction.

Since he had spoken low I didn't recognize who he was at first, but after a few seconds of processing it, it hit me. If my eyes had the ability to widen, they would have, "Uncle Cal?" I said between coughs that I was trying to suppress, "I thought you were—"

"Sh," He silenced me and I felt something being placed over my face, "Here, this will keep you from coughing. But we need to be quiet until we hijack one of the escape pods. I'll tell you everything then."

If he's alive, does this mean Ahsoka is? Their daughter, Willow? Uncle Ben? Aunt Padme? I thought they were all on Alderaan when it was destroyed, but maybe my source was wrong.

"How did you know I was here?" I asked more smoothly now that I could breathe.

"Master Yoda had a vision of you being brought here. So he came to find me, and I've also been looking for you for some time, kid. Where the hell have you been?" He demanded in a stern tone.

Between Uncle Obi-Wan and Uncle Cal, Cal was always the more strict one of the two. He had more of an incentive to teach me how to survive the harsh galaxy, while Obi-Wan was the opposite. He wanted me to see the beauty and not be afraid of it. I appreciated both and love them the same, but Cal is one of the main reasons why I'm still alive. He taught me how to survive and is the one who taught me how to use a lightsaber, while Obi-Wan taught me how to build one.

I still remember the time I was thirteen and Cal took me to Dathomir for combat practice. We got lost for three days, I nearly died three times, he almost drowned, we got attacked by hundreds of spiders at once, and I remember being covered in the guts of a Gundark for more than a day...

It was the greatest three days of my life.

But I still got grounded and he got sent to the couch for a week.

"I don't think you're going to believe me," I nervously laughed and took off the mask just as we entered an elevator, free of the smoke.

"Try me," He hit one of the buttons and the doors slowly began to close.

Before I could say anything, I heard my name being shouted once again, but this time it wasn't my Father, "Luke Skywalker!" Leia screamed as she stomped down the hallway towards us. She raised her hand and the elevator doors halted, she held them open as she approached with her lightsaber ready for use.

"Let the doors go Leia, I don't want to hurt you, but I will," Cal said calmly, a dead glare in his eyes. Anyone can see just by the look in his eyes that this man has been through the worst kind of pain imaginable, and that made me nervous for the conversation we had ahead.

Maybe Ahsoka and Willow really aren't okay. I hope that's not the case, I hate to think of him being left behind without them.

Leia's eyes glowed in rage at his threat and she immediately threw her lightsaber in our direction, or I guess I should say in Cal's direction. It was aiming straight for his heart, but he held his hand up and stopped it right before it touched him, "Your teacher hasn't been teaching you well if you're willingly handing your weapon over to the enemy," He flicked his fingers up, causing the saber to turn and face straight up. He grabbed it by the handle and turned it off, "I'll be back for you both." He spat and with his other hand, he used the force on Leia and twisted her wrist to the hand that she was using to hold the doors open.

She yelled out and grabbed her wrist as soon as the doors closed. Eventually her screams of pain faded away as the elevator moved further from her. It hurt to see or hear her in pain, but I knew Cal's actions were necessary for our escape and survival.

"Cal, I heard a rumor that you were all on Aleraan when it—"

He looked down at the floor, "I was the only one not on Alderaan, everyone is else is gone," He said, finally giving me the final confirmation of what I had already known. He cleared his throat, "You didn't answer my question, where have you been?" He asked, trying to change the subject so he wouldn't have a breakdown.

I blinked away my tears, it was pointless to cry over something I had already spent countless nights crying over.

"Have you ever heard of the World Between Worlds?" I wiped the tears off of my cheeks and composed myself.

His eyes slightly widened as he mumbled in disbelief, "Luke...you didn't."

"I did, and I need to go back. I know I can make things better." I felt like I sounded like a mad man, and maybe I was, but I needed to try.

"And if you make things worse?" He asked, tilting his head.

"Can it really get worse?" I asked furrowing my brows, "Look at everything around us Uncle. Your wife, my aunt, is dead, as is your only daughter. I have no parents, and the only ones I had are now dead. And my sister wants to kill me." I ranted. I felt horrible at the way he flinched when I mentioned the fate of his family, but I wanted him to see my side of things. With a future like this, I feel like the only place we can go is up.

He looked away, a tear sliding down his cheek, "We'll have to finish this another time, the doors are about to open and we need to fight our way through to the escape pods." He grabbed his lightsaber from his belt and turned it on, while also turning on Leia's. He eyed the red with disgust, but kept it on to use to his advantage.

"Where's your ship?" I questioned.

He shrugged, the doors opening, "I crashed it coming in."

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After our successful escape with minimal casualties, the pod took us to the nearest planet, which is where my uncle purchased a new ship that was off the radar so we could leave instantly and quietly. We hardly spoke during the entire escapade, but after reaching hyperspace in the new ship towards a destination I forced him to put in, we had finally sat across from each other on the cockpit floor. It made me feel like a kid again because this is what he had us do when I was in trouble, or if we were about to meditate — but it was mostly because I had a habit of getting in trouble.

"This is a dangerous game you're playing." He broke the silence.

"I know," I sighed, "But you have to admit Uncle Cal, I have a point. And I even got to meet my Mom and she's..." I smiled and it slowly widened, "Perfect."

He glanced down to the floor with a light nod, "Yes (Y/n) was a lovely woman, you take after her in a lot of ways," He rubbed his forward, a sign of frustration, a hidden meaning behind his words, "But you have no idea what you're doing, or what it is that's going to happen if you keep messing with things beyond your understanding. What is it you think is going to happen to this reality Luke? You think it's just going to disappear like it never existed?" He asked rhetorically, and I didn't answer, "Because a possibility is that this reality will continue—if you succeed—and you are going to create something entirely new, a reality that is not yours, but a different Luke's." He shaped his hands like a V, "Two timelines happening at the same time, going in different directions. It's pointless, my Ahsoka will always be gone, and the same with your Mother."

"You don't know if that's what's going to happen, this can all be gone," I had the idea of this life fading away, being overshadowed by a better one. And that this me, would fade away too, like dust in the wind. I hope that's it, I would be okay with dying knowing I was being reborn into a better future.

"Neither do you," He said sympathetically, "But like I said, it's beyond yours and even my understanding."

I took a deep breath, "I know I'm going into this blindly, but I'd never forgive myself if I didn't give it a shot. And it has also been interesting getting to know your younger selves. You are blind by the way." I said, knowing he'd know what I was referring to.

It was obvious he wanted to smile, but he held it back, still upset by my decision to not listen to him, "I was, and she always made it so obvious," He scoffed at himself, "Do me a favor and help me not to be, the more time I get to have with her, the better." He reached forward and grabbed my hands, "And another favor, be careful, you are all I have left."

We both leaned forward, pressing our foreheads together. He was never one to give goodnight kisses or hugs or be affectionate in anyway to anyone who wasn't Ahsoka or Willow, so this is what he'd do to show his affection, "As are you. I will make things better, I promise."

He slowly smiled, tears in his eyes, "I hope you're right and I hope I'm wrong, I really do."

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Walking through the darkness, I found a moment that grabbed my interest. And thanks to the stories I've heard by my Aunts and Uncles, I knew it was also a good moment in the timeline to step back into.

So there I was, inside of the room where only my Mother resided. She was in a bacta tank, fully covered thankfully, and peacefully sleeping. I was addicted to being in this time, everything seemed so peaceful and calm in comparison to my own. Also, my Mom was alive here and my Dad wasn't insane, so obviously I'm biased.

I approached the tank, "What Uncle Cal said is making me rethink some things about being here," I spoke, pretending that she was listening, "Maybe the reality I create won't be one I can be apart of, but this one I can be," I raised my hand up and placed it on the glass, "If I'm going to save your life, maybe I could use your help. It would give me the opportunity to get to know you." Slowly I'm going to insert myself into their lives, I just need a well thought out plan first so I don't come in headstrong and confuse the hell out of everyone.

I noticed movement within her tank, and I glanced towards her hand that was raising. With her eyes still closed, she brought her hand to me, placing it on the glass in the same spot where my hand was. Subconsciously she felt my presence and I wasn't surprised by it, they do say that there is no bond stronger than a mother and her children.

I stared at our hands for well over a minute before glancing up to her face, "Would you still love him if you knew what he was going to become? Would you try to save him? Would you kill him? Because I'm balancing all options and I don't know what I should do Mom."

I didn't need her to speak to know what she would try to do in my position, she'd try to save him. But the only issue with that is, I don't know if he can be saved.

I turned my head to the side and glanced at the closed door behind me, sensing someone approaching.

Anakin's POV
The Queen, after activating (y/n)'s collar, threw it down to the ground and stomped on it. It was completely destroyed, but my Padawan's screams of pain remained echoing into my ears, so I knew the collar was stuck on, "Better get your girlfriend, she has seconds on that setting." She laughed, thinking she had the upper hand with Obi-Wan already trying to fight off Zygerians to get to Ahsoka.

"You shouldn't have done that," Without a second thought, I twirled my lightsaber and struck down her personal guard who had been up her ass all day. And then, I swiped across her chest, instantly killing her.

'Anakin...'

I pushed the memory of what I did away, and waved my hand to open the door to the room my Padawan resided in. I paused the second I entered the room, suspecting that something in the air was off, but the feeling shook away from me the moment my eyes landed on her.

I approached the tank, and made sure to wave the door closed behind me before I sat in-front of it and looked up at her, "I killed an unarmed woman today," I confessed. I felt like I needed to, even if no one was actually listening to me, "She deserved it, she was trying to kill you," I dropped my gaze down, before leaning forward and resting my forehead on the cold glass, "So I don't know why I feel so remorseful."

And it wasn't the first time I did something like this and it had me wondering if I'm a good person or not. I don't mean to make the mistakes I do, sometimes I don't know what's done until it's done, and I'm left with the aftermath. I would take so many things back if I could.

"I've done horrible things (y/n), things I regret,"  My voice fogged up the glass in-front of me, and I used this opportunity to draw a basic frown, "Would you hate me if you knew?" My voice got lower, "About the men, the women, the children, all the sand people that screamed for me to spare their lives as I took them." I closed my eyes, a tear falling down my cheek as their screams echoed in my mind.

What I did today was making me relive this, and it was killing me more than usual, although I don't know why. But if I had to guess, I would say it's because now I have someone whose opinion matters. And if she were to be as disgusted with me as I am with myself, it would devastate me. Especially since lately she's the only one who has been able to make me smile, no matter how annoying she is.

I wiped the frown off of the glass and opened my eyes. I peered into the tank, only seeing her feet since I was so low to the ground. I glanced up with a sigh, "Please wake up, I miss you."

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