"Why?" Anakin asked as Zannah had stopped him from executing the remainder of Bane's soul and consciousness.
"I will do it myself." She said before taking Anakin's red lightsaber and swinging the blade through Bane's neck, separating his head from the rest of his body.
Bane then started to dissipate into nothingness, then Zannah looked towards Anakin looking him directly into his eyes.
"You shouldn't have touched me." She spoke. "Now you will have to be stuck with me."
Anakin was about to ask what she meant before feeling something he was all too familiar with at this point. "Great." He said and sighed. "Another Dyad."
Before the two could continue to talk within her mind a flash of light happened and Anakin was ejected from her mind.
[]
We rejoin Anakin and Zannah where he had touched her.
They were awkwardly in a compromising position that leaves much to the imagination. Groaning Anakin is the first to awaken from his spiritual slumber and quickly untangles himself from this situation as he doesn't want the woman to attack him again.
He had just helped her but he assumes that any and all good will would go out the window if she awakes to how they were.
Taking a look around the environment still projected flames and molten lava deep beneath under some crystalized caverns that glowed a range of reds and oranges. The sky was a blazing red, yellow and orange while the ground was also painted red with brown and black mixed in.
'This certainly doesn't look very hospitable.' Anakin thought as he waited for Zannah to awaken from her subconscious.
The Sith woman started to awaken and as her eyes opened one could see that she was still deeply aligned with the dark side. "Where am I?" Her eyes were still the burning yellow of the dark sides corruption.
Anakin had let go of his hold on the dark side allowing his eyes to return to his glowing violet eyes. "Hey you, you're finally awake." Anakin said while immediately thinking to himself. 'Wait a minute, did I just...' He was interrupted as the woman immediately got up and took on a defensive stance.
"You!"
"Me?" Anakin pointed a finger to himself as the woman spoke to him.
"Yes you! Why did you do it? What did you think you were doing!" She was distraught, no doubt as she had just experienced a cleansing of sorts.
"Nothing, I just wanted to ask some questions." Anakin stated.
"Then why did you try and do it forcibly?" She questioned him still not letting her guard down.
"I thought that was one the Sith worked, might makes right." Anakin stated.
"You are both wrong and right." She replied then continued. "You are slightly wrong in that might makes right, it is strength gives way to power and power gives way to victory."
"Right, I was seeking victory and the fruits of what that would give me." Anakin replied knowing full well he is probably annoying the beautiful Sith.
"You are totally doing that on purpose." Zannah said with a questioning tone.
"No... Well, maybe. Yes, maybe." Anakin replied.
"Well, what is it then? Yes or No?" Zannah was actually indulging in this childish behavior that was wasting some time.
"Both." Anakin answered.
Sighing Zannah then started to calm down after her initial suspicions. "Alright. It would seem that you are not the brightest of Sith, in fact you dont even have the signature eyes." She then continued. "In fact, you didn't even talk with me properly first and just attacked me..."
Anakin just decides to play up his ignorance and tilts his head to the side in a cute manner.
'What the hell is up with this person and why do I feel strangely attracted to him...' Zannah was having weird thoughts and feelings not knowing where such things were coming from.
One only has to look back on her life because throughout she didn't experience any proper love and was quite the sociopathic little child with minimal feelings. She had always wondered what love was and what it would be like.
She even went so far as to try and manipulate another person into believing she had loved him, but she didn't.
It would seem that she is also unaware of what exactly a Force Dyad is given she is unable to recognize the now special bond between herself and Anakin. Subconsciously she may have recognized it but it the waking world she did not.
"I guess I could take you under my wings for now..." Zannah said out loud not expecting an answer.
"You will? Where am I exactly?" Anakin asked playing up his act of ignorance.
"Welcome to Hell, or at least one part of it." Zannah answered. "There are many layers to this place, the further down you go, the more dangerous it becomes. In general most of us Sith stay on the upper levels because it is safer."
"What is deeper below?" He asked.
"Creatures and beings of great power that are extremely old. Beings that are no Sith and in fact have power levels similar to stories, legends and myths of divine beings." She continued.
"Really?"
"Yes, but I believe it is better if you see stuff like this than hearing it from me." Zannah said. "Follow me."
Thus began the journey into the depths of chaos, an never ending abyss that was easily the worst place for any being to be.
[]
Zannah and Anakin spent an predetermined amount of time together as they traversed the spiritual landscape.
"So, what is your name anyway? You have not told me, I go by Darth Zannah." Zannah said trying to pull out any information from Anakin.
"Anakin Skywalker." He obliged.
Raising an eyebrow she asks. "Are you not a Sith?"
"No." He replied.
"A Dark Jedi then." She nods her as if she found the answer.
"No." He replies again.
"Not a Dark Jedi? Then you must at least be a practitioner of the dark side to be here." She was getting confused.
"Yes and no." He again said but this time it confused her even more.
"Can you just answer me directly?" Frustration leaked from her voice. She was used to people, especially men falling for her very beautiful and alluring charms, but it would seem that the dunderhead before her wasn't charmed.
"I did." Anakin was actually enjoying this experience because it helped relieve some pressure from what was happening.
Her anger nearly spills over but she manages to restrain herself and feels she would regret trying to attack him again. "Fine, keep being stupid."
Deciding that enough was enough, Anakin wants to make amends. "Ok, I was just playing around." Honestly that may not have been the best thing to say in this situation.
Zannah twirls around and lunges at Anakin going for the metaphorical kill, his family jewels but he easily dodges.
"Woah there! Careful, I still those." Anakin says.
"You are dead anyway, just accept your fate already." She replied before going to punch him but he just stops her and looks into her eyes with an eerie glow being emitted.
"You cannot escape me now." Anakin says.
"What do you mean by that?" She felt there was something more to his words but he didn't answer but dodged the question.
"What I mean is that you should continue to be my guide for now, I need to know what this place is all about. I am not going to stay here long."
She laughs in derision. "Of course not, there is no way you sound exactly like every other poor sod who ends up down here."
"I dont have much time and I would appreciate it if you would hurry up taking me to my destination." Anakin now said and his voice lacked the cheerful energy he had before.
Seeing the seriousness of the situation she cant help but try and push her luck, she wanted to know about the outside world. "And why should I help you?" She questioned.
"Like I said, you cant escape me now." Anakin replies implying something more that she doesn't realize.
While the concept of a Dyad within the Force was not a new one, it was certainly regarded as lost information and was not generally taught within the Sith. Even when it was incredibly important to the Sith in the first place.
So it did make sense that since it was so rare, so special and unique it would be impossible to know about it and if you have one without actually knowing how it feels.
"Right... If you wont give me a reason, then at least make this an exchange." She redirected herself into the direction she wanted.
"And what would that be?" He asked.
"Information, it gets boring being down here for a couple millennia and I want to be regaled in whatever stories you have to be told. Tell me, have the Sith become great? How much more powerful has our Order become?" She asked.
"So you wish to know whether or not your Order succeeded ever since your passing?" Anakin asked knowing full well that was what she wanted to know.
"Yes, I may have been short lived, but the Sith are eternal." Zannah stated.
"Are they?" Anakin questions allowing something else in his voice, doubt.
"Are you doubting our capabilities?" Zannah asks him with some anger.
"The Sith are no doubt strong, in the past. Now, the Sith are definitely trying to make a great comeback through another Sith Lord but I doubt he would last long." He replies.
"Tell me more." She asks him with some haste.
"Ok." Anakin then proceeds to detail to her about the events of the galaxy ever since her time of passing which was the Great Peace of the Republic. About how the Sith Order had collapsed sometime after Zannah's subsequent death and no other great Sith Order of any kind had made a reemergence.
"Impossible." Zannah denies this. "At least there are Sith still alive and still follow the Rule of Two."
"Contrary to what you think, you were nothing but a puppet, a pawn within the great scheme of things." Anakin said to her. "The current leader is actually someone who would spit in the face of your traditions."
"A traitor then." Zannah says with some heat.
"Perhaps." He replies. "Now, can you lead me to where I want to go."
"A deal is a deal." Despite being a manipulative person for some reason she was told within the Force and had felt herself feel negatively about trying to back out from their exchange.
"Great." Anakin smiled which sent her into a daze for a second that seemed to be an eternity before returning to herself.
"Come, it would seem you have some type of death wish wanting to face those things." Even though she was incredibly talented and strong within the Force, she doubts anyone could defeat those things in the depths.
"Maybe I do but I need to do it." Anakin stated more to himself than to her in conviction. These abyssal monsters were in his way to eternal life after all.
[]
Ahsoka had been having the time of her life ever since meeting Anakin.
She was a lonely child, not necessarily shunned by her pairs but also not accepted either, she was without any who she called call her friends and even though she had a slight sense of belonging to the Jedi she always had this feeling there was something more to come.
Then it came to her, visions of an older looking version of herself with another person. It was Anakin, but her Anakin now looked different, not completely different as he still had the same facial structure and everything, it was just alot of things about him was different.
She had seen herself become his friend and had also seen herself eventually leave the Order. Something she was scared about at first but then she didn't have to worry anymore because she would always have someone to come too.
She looked up to Barriss as an older sister, the same applied to Aayla as well but she was much more closer to Barriss.
What wouldn't change though is that she was incredibly attached to Anakin because she was always meant to be friends with him. The Force had told her so.
Currently twelve years of age she would soon start having to look for a master and while students were generally accepted at ages 13, she knows that she was different. She had recently turned 12 and was a year off from constructing her lightsaber and from finding a master.
There was only one person she would even accept or even consider as a master, in fact she had heard and had sensed that Barriss was going to become a Knight soon.
So she would wholeheartedly take her chance as soon as she could.
Ani, she had affectionately referred to him as had told her once, 'In life there are opportunities and once missed they usually dont come again, but that doesn't mean these thing are always right and caution is needed when doing so.'
She wanted to throw caution to the wind and in fact didn't care because she was content in her feelings and accepted that she wanted to stay by his side even when he already had so many people with him.
He had essentially become her family, more so than the Jedi. She knew that the other older women and Barriss would abandon their lives as Jedi and follow Anakin, so why couldn't she do the same?
After all, Ani had also told her, 'Your life is your own and you should make your own decisions.' She conveniently left out his other piece of advice because this choice was not something she would even take into consideration.
She would be next to him simply because she was meant too. If you are wondering what Anakin had also added on it was. 'Just know that not every decision is going to be the right one.'
Ahsoka thought to herself. 'I wonder if Anakin is really ok...' She was left here alone on Coruscant because everyone else she was extremely close with went on a search for Anakin. Not that she blamed them, she was just hoping everyone would be alright.
When she said she had a feeling everything would be fine, she didn't lie but that didn't mean she still didn't worry.
There was many times she had gone to Master Yoda for some guidance, not that she didn't appreciate Anakin, she did, extremely so.
It was in fact Anakin's suggestion for her to not only stay with them all of the time because there would be times that she wouldn't be able to seek his advice and while he doesn't agree with Yoda alot of the time, he was atleast experienced and had some wisdom to share.
Yoda had said to her in regards to finding a master. "Youngling Ahsoka, nervous about finding a master, hmmm?"
"Yes." She replied.
"Believe through the Force, there can only be one for you I see, don't worry. Strong within the Force, stronger then most within the Order, assigned you will be one most appropriate for you if need be." Yoda finished.
She gave her thanks and pondered the meaning behind his words but didn't put alot of thought into it.