Younglings

It takes only about a week to get to Ilum. Heather and Him spent the majority of the time finishing class work and reviewing schematics of how to build a lightsaber. Every spare moment beyond that he spent training the dog, which he has yet to choose a name for.

Normally they would go to Ilum on a ship called the Crucible but because of their particular security issue and the fact that the ship was already on Ilum they were meeting them instead.

There were rules against non-Jedi setting foot on the planet. While the pilots were allowed to land their they weren't allowed off the transport. The men were very curious about this forbidden planet. Commander Cody himself had to pilot the transport to keep his men from fighting to be the pilot.

Ilum was a desolate block of ice, but there was something about it... the force beat underneath their feet like a heartbeat, the wind felt like the whistling breath coming from one's lungs.

"I believe we're just in time." Kenobi says pointing towards the ice caves. "That's the entrance over there. I would suggest running before the instructor sends the others off to find their crystals."

Desmond doesn't hesitate, he didn't want to be stuck in this ice longer then he needed to be. Heather quickly follows having stayed a moment to say something to Kenobi. They both come to a line of footprints and quickly follow them inside a literal hole in a wall.

They enter an elaborate entrance hall carved out of the mountain itself. Master Yoda, himself, was in the center waiting. There were no younglings in sight.

"Just missed them you did. Know the purpose of a lightsaber I know you do. Enter the caves and follow the force. A day you have until frozen the entrance. Find a crystal meant for you, you must."

"Is there anything else we need to know, Master?" Heather asks Yoda from behind him.

Yoda hums thoughtfully scratching his chin, "Visions the force will give you. Heed them you must, if a crystal you will find."
The force giving them visions... great.

Looking over his shoulder he could see his emotions on the matter reflected on Heather's face, even though she nods at the old master.

She turns to him and sends the mental equivalent of a poke in the force, nudging him forward.

They walk into the caves, leaving Yoda behind. The very walls were singing, the resonance reaching deep within him.. within her.. reaching the very core of their beings.

He felt a tug deep in that part of him. He knew it was the force.

Meeting Heather's eyes, "See you in a bit."

"Yes."

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Her footsteps echo in the passageways, becoming more defined more in sync. The ice and crystal walls were suddenly showing her reflections of the clones. They were the ones marching in sync, holding their weapons at the ready. Not a limb out of place, not a single note of them being individuals. It was cold.

"It's perfect isn't it." a voice says by her ear.

Not expecting the voice her head jerks to the side.

It was a clone. He was leaning against a ATTA in a hanger. She was no longer inside the caves. She didn't know many clones yet but she was certain that she's never seen this particular man before.

"I'm sorry..?" she felt a bit off balance. It didn't look like the caves around her anymore.

The clone looks down at her but points at a row of clones in front of them.

"Perfect little puppets all in a row, not a string out of place... " the man sneers, "Tell me, do you have matching collars and leashes picked out?" the rows of white armored clones suddenly had gold accents on their armor, none of them looked very individual. "Ready to give out treats to your favorite dogs?!?" he sneers again. Gold metals suddenly forms on two breast plates.

"I have no control over them being drafted in this war." she states defensively.

The clone laughs at her, "Don't you mean enslaved?" he waves a hand and a short but familiar figure appears.

"Would mistress like some soup?" Kretcher asks in his low drawl, his voice croaked and... broken.

The clone laughs again, "Oh but why should I be surprised..... you have a history with enslaving others... don't you?"

"He knew too much, releasing him would have given the enemy too much information and the stress of doing so would have killed him!" Dumbledore was right. She would have released him then and there if it was otherwise.

The unnamed clone sneers, "Oh... anything for the greater good is that it? Was it for the greater good that you died? That you were taken from your friends too?"

"Yes, yes it was." That was a fact, even if she was bitter over the price she had to pay. It didn't make it any less painful, any less abhorrent.

The clone gives her a look, his eyes daggers, "But was it good? Is it right that we are enslaved? Is it right that men and women are dying at this very moment for greed? Is it right that peacekeepers are forced into war? ....... Was it right that you, a young woman, had to die before you truly lived?"

"...no.. none of that is or was right..."

The clone's face becomes sober, "What does that tell you?"

"That we have to sometimes compromise with what is wrong, be it people or circumstances. Sometimes we need to allow the wrong things to happen in order to have some right things happen." her mouth was dry.

"And which one is this war? Is it something involving circumstances being wrong or is this particular evil the product of people?"

"People..." there was no doubt of that.

The clone expression goes blank, "And what are you going to do to those people?"

"Stop them."

"By tickling them with the force?" he sneers, "By turning their hair blue? Maybe have them dance a jig right into a jail cell?... Pathetic."

"What do you want from me!?" she snaps. She understood what he was saying, even agreeing with some of it. "I can only use what I have at my disposal, I'm not infallible."

"But how have you been using even that?" he scoffs, "Hiding from who and what you are little witch?... making a little doggy to play with when you need a hug?" he waves his hand again at the group of clones. The walls and floors were suddenly covered in blood and body parts. The clones were reduced to piles of rotting meat, "How are you going to defend anyone if you don't stand up and fight?... How are you going to free my brothers if you don't use everything at your disposal?... How are you going to hold back this sea of blood if you don't even try?"

"Killing is wrong.." it's what was holding her back, why she was so reluctant to get a saber.... and she knew it. This clone knew it.

"Yes, it always is." the clone says strongly, decisively. "...but there are times when it is needed."

There was a hollow bitter taste in her mouth, "For the greater good, sometimes people must allow... no.. do what is wrong." she concludes.

The clone nods, "Yes, that's the unfortunate reality of life and like many before you, you will choose to do that wrong... But, do me a favor Jedi, at least make sure you do those wrongs for the right reasons."

The still unnamed clone fades from sight and at the point of where his heart had been was a bright kyber crystal.

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"We're not the Isu you know.." Shawn points out calmly.

The man turns into Minerva "Well, not usually" she almost says lazily.

"We can be anyone we want to be." Rebecca says after Minerva fades.

"Exactly, I don't trust you." Desmond glares at the force taking the image of his friend.

Rebecca snorts and turns into Leonardo, "Logically, we are not an individual, we are everyone. Will be everyone. Have been everyone."

"We're innocents." Petruccio says kindly, holding onto a handful of feathers.

"We're sinners." Cesare Borgia sneers licking blood off of his sword.

"We are the wise." An old Altair points out before he becomes the young and brash master, the version of himself who broke the tenants, "... and the foolish."

"The force is our knowledge our wisdom, it's the reality of who we were, it's the lost wish of who we wanted to be. It's our countless lessons learned over countless Eons of existence." an old Ezio informs him passionately, "You listened to the past before, why not take what we actually wish to give you now?"

"...and where did your wisdom lead me!!" Desmond barks, enraged at the force using them like this, "It killed me.... it killed them!"

"In the grand scale of things, the Isu were nothing. Big ants on a small hill." Juno says with a sneer, "They were too insular, too contained, they never tried to leave the planet.... we were not the force when we made your choices for you."

"They were liars, who used us... abused us... until everything burned down.." Conner lowers his head a bitterness that he felt in life radiating from him.

Rodrigo Borgia smiles with bared teeth, "They were false gods. We of the force are not pretending to be what we are not."

"What? You don't trust her?" Lucy says quietly, "You think Heather is just another pretty face out to lie to you? You saw her memories..."

Haytham was looking him in the eye "It's time you faced some hard truths, boy"

The force no longer turns into another but instead all of them appear around him. His father solidifies out of the mist and wraps his arms around him, He was old... so much older then last he saw him. Grief was radiating from him... grief for him... "You're been given a second chance. The force isn't something like the Isu... it's real... it's us... we are here for you son. Please listen... "

At his father's side another figure comes into being, "The force is mercy, Desmond, my baby boy." his mother wraps her arms around him, tears of joy sliding down her face.

"..I... okay." His parents continue to hold him for a minute or two then reluctantly ease back. "What do you want from me?"
His mom shakes her head, "We want nothing from you but for you to listen. We want to help you live... that's the purpose of the force. It helps guide life so it can continue..."

Altair, Ezio and Conner step forward, Each one holds out a Kyber Crystal. "You passed the trials of our lives. These are yours. It'll keep all of us with you... it'll help the force be your weapon... Make us proud, our legacy..." Ezio says as they all fade.

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They were both quiet.

They both had to board the Crucible in order to create their lightsaber. Because they needed to leave with the Negotiator the other ship couldn't leave Ilum until they finished their task.

The children were happy and playful, ohhing and awwing over the selection of parts. They were obviously not effected by their visions as much as them.

The professor droid was looking over the children's selections humming thoughtfully, helping them when they needed it.

Heather and him were quietly going through another box of hilts trying to find the right fit.

"This one doesn't feel right." it was a curved metal hilt. It looked like it had a good grip though.

He shakes his head, "No, I don't think it's meant for human hands. It too large."

"You would be correct. I believe that particular hilt was designed for Ithoians. They have two fingers and two thumbs on each hand. It makes it particularly hard to make hilts, so their are quite a few premade shells for them." Professor Huyang explains looking over the box. "Are you two having difficulty in selecting?"

They both look at each other and snort. Before the droid could question them they both take out their Crystals.

Heather's flared in an odd way that looked almost like it was done with a cutting tool. It was a perfect swirl. It was odd because most kyber crystals looked more like shards of jagged glass and not a sea shell.

Desmond of coarse had the three entire crystals from his ancestors.

Huyang's optical sensors widen and shrink obviously surprised at the two. "Yes, I see why you two are having problems. Rarely does first lightsabers involve such unique situations."

He goes to his cabinets and brings down a couple more boxes, he places them onto the table, "Look through these. Use the force now. Feel out which one... or two would suit you.."

It doesn't take long for Heather to find a hilt that sung just right for her. It wasn't metal or bone or even wood. It was a solid stone hilt.

"Ahhh, excellent selection. That came from a sacred stone. It broke off during a natural disaster and the force lead a Jedi Master to bring it too me. It's much stronger then normal stone. It was a miracle in itself that it broke off."

Heather eyes widen as she looks over the cylinder in surprise. They must have used some sort of specialized cutting tool to get it the right shape.

"Careful. We don't want to turn the ship into a flying forest." Desmond jokes.

Heather rolls her eyes at him and flips him off, much to his amusement.

He turns back to the box, examining what was available. Most felt off or wrong until his hand brushes a strange dark metal.

"This one." and it was one. The force was telling him that it had to be one. All of his ancestors were a part of him, they were one in his one being. His resolve can not be divided into two blades. None of his ancestors trained with such.... perhaps later in his life he'll try two sabers but for now...

Huyang goes quiet looking at the hilt.

"They all belong in this one." it was a sleek dark metal with a solid guard much like the swords his ancestors used.

The professor finally nods, "Very well, you may attempt to create a blade with this one but do not be surprised if you find it does not suit you."

"Is there something wrong with it?" it felt right in the force. He's going to be pissed if it's defective or something.

Huyang shakes his head, "No, I will tell you after your attempt. Only know that if you fail we will have to hunt another down."

That was fair but probably not needed.

He goes to the personal work benches and sits next to Heather who had the diagram out and was, from the look of it, assembling a reflective matrix within the hilt so the energy beam could hit the emitter array properly.

"Aren't we suppose to be using the force to put them together?" the children were floating the pieces of their lightsabers together and not relying on their hands and tools.

Heather snorts, "I'm not welding these in place with the force." she points out. "Can you imagine me floating these tool around in this mess?" she points at the children. A few of them had their lightsabers assembled and were waving them around gleefully.

He grunts in agreement and turns back to his crystals and hilt.

It doesn't take him long to assemble the pieces together. Unlike Heather he had a bit more traditional hilt and stones with no need to adjust the hilt for hundreds of odd refraction of light.

Finally the moment comes for the last step... putting the stones in.

He could feel a hint of each ancestor within the stones. Altair's would be first, the first to gain power the first to shine through the others. The second would be Ezio's. It was the largest and most powerful of the three, the most influential, the brightest. Conner's would be the last, like the tip of a sword, the first to meet the enemy, the part of the sword that would move the most.

Huyang who was hovering over the others seemed to spot that he was done.

He hurries over and looks down at the saber and all it's component, carefully analyzing it for flaws. "Yes, yes very good. I believe that it is assembled properly. Now to see if the hilt is right.... go and turn it on. It shouldn't explode at least."
Desmond does as he says, he goes into the center area and the children politely move away from him and his untested lightsaber.

He holds it up and grips the handle like it was born to him. He hesitates only a moment and turns it on.

It wasn't green or blue or even yellow. I was a dark black with an outline of blood red.

"Oh Marvelous. A unique color for a unique blade." Huyang cries out, his optics zooming in and zooming out at the saber, "I should have suspected though..."

"Suspected what?" he does a simple Kata with the blade, testing it. The black reminded him of the black robes the mentor of the brotherhood wore, the red reminded him of the red sashes that was traditional among the assassins as well.

The droid hums, "Why the hilt is made of beskar. Only one other lightsaber sports a black blade, the darksaber." Huyang brings up an information page, only a glance at it told him it somehow dealt with Mandalorians, "It too has a beskar hilt."
"Then I should read up on it then huh?" He deactivates the sword and sits down to read the holographic page. Weren't there some issues with Mandolore and the war?

"Professor, could you hold this for me? I need to weld this and hold this other part at the same time, I can't hold the hilt steady without burning myself." Heather seemed a bit ruffled. She had a least two burns from what he could see, she did not look like she was enjoying this.

"Oh dear..." the droid says hurrying to assist.

It takes a bit longer, well over an hour but Heather finally fixes the inside of her hilt quickly assembling the rest of it, almost as an afterthought. The design was unique.

"Well activate it, I want to see." the other children were long done with making their lightsabers and not having anything better to do ended up watching Heather build her's.

She gives the kid a bemused look but moves to the middle of the room. "Here goes."

She holds it out away from her body and flips the switch.

"Well that's...." it was green, but instead of a regular blade of light it looked like one of those duster sticks that were similar to a fox tail. There were thousands of little blades of light branching out of the center, each one a different shade of green... each one just as deadly as the last.

She waves it and he's surprised that they actually moved around like little hairs instead of staying in their shape.

"..why does my lightsaber have to be weird?" she pouts, waving it around a bit more before turning it off.

Desmond snorts, "Well fighting with it will be interesting."