So.... I'm alive.
I already gave this message on my Supergirl fanfic, but for Will of the Force readers:
Well, I could give a long explanation but, really there's not much to say here.
Depression hit me hard, so hard that I kinda lost six months of my life doing nothing, lost a semester of college, and barely interacted with anyone.
I kept saying I'd start writing again, and I started trying a little before Christmas, but I only succeeded now. I didn't even read messages before... although the notifications and knowing some people still gave my stories likes was kinda nice.
Anyway, here's chapter 21, I plan on returning to weekly posts but... yeah, I'm better, not great.I really, really want to promise I'll post regularly, but I swore I'd restart on Christmas, then I swore I'd restart two or three weeks ago and... well, here we are.
Still, keep your fingers crossed people, and please, comment on the chapter, that certainly helps a lot.
Also, I'm really, really, sorry for the hiatus without even saying anything, I hope you guys can forgive me.
Next chapter probably in a week, I'll try not to disappear again.
PS: This isn't the first chapter after I came back, but one that was free on my Patreon a week after I posted chapter 20 here, so there shouldn't be a drop in quality.
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Anakin's first thought was that the Empire must truly trust their informant because their ambush, while very well planned and designed, relied totally on the assumption that it would hit the prisoner transport at this exact location.
Feeling the Empire's thugs' rough positions through the Force, he could well imagine the attack.
A large car to hit the lead vehicle, blocking the street while some of their men attacked from the front. Another van blocked the retreat, with a few more men attacking from the back while yet more rained gunfire from elevated positions within the buildings.
It had little room for improvisation, but they may have more forces beyond his immediate sensory range prepared to delay the PRT in case they changed routes.
Taking a breath, the Force seemed to gather around him of its own accord, so much so that his presence filled the street with a wave of dread, freezing his opponents in place for a second.
The entire block grew eerily quiet, the civilians running for their lives as Anakin let his lightsaber's blade stabilize, the fluctuations of the energy discharges fading away to leave only the red blade a few centimeters above the scorched asphalt.
All around, he could feel the fear filling the average gang members, the confusion from the parahumans and, for a few of them, the urge to engage, as if something was driving them into action despite his power.
Several gang members were still hiding inside seemingly empty cars or atop nearby buildings, but Anakin gave the civilians another second to run before starting to act.
Finally, he took a step forward and then paused. With a sigh, he grabbed the drone from inside his cloak and released it, letting the small device float in the air behind his back. He had promised the youngling that she could watch.
From inside one of the cars, a gang member finally acted. The former Sith Lord could feel the man's nerves breaking as he snapped up from his hiding position, lifted a rifle, and started to pull the trigger with a scream.
With a flick of his free hand, Anakin gripped the vehicle with the Force and threw it towards another parked van, the two gang members inside screamed as the car flipped in the air before hitting the van, windows exploding in a shower of glass, the metal screaming from the strain.
He hadn't used enough power to kill the people inside, but they were still hurt and out of the fight.
The street seemed to explode in action. More than a dozen men broke cover to start shooting at him, screaming in both anger and fear. Unfortunately for them, they just didn't have the training or the strength to withstand his presence, ruining their aim.
He ignored them, paying far more attention to the seven of them who hadn't panicked.
Two were closer to him, hiding inside a building to his right and feeling incredibly eager for a fight, almost as if they were happy he had appeared. Still, they remained hidden, waiting.
The others were more reserved, wary of him, and worried about their failed ambush. Three of them were on the roof of a nearby building while another two stayed back, hiding to his left and around the corner.
Regardless, the Force warned him their goal was to take him by surprise while he dealt with the unpowered. The Empire seemed to have changed targets, aiming to spring their trap around him instead of the PRT transport. Futile.
Almost lazily, Anakin dodged a bullet and lifted his lightsaber, evaporating another that wouldn't have hit him, but could have ricocheted and wounded his leg.
For a second, he debated attacking, rushing into the building to his right and using his regained mobility to destroy them before they could finish gathering themselves, but he wasn't here just to eliminate them, he was here to send a message to everyone. He would not simply stand aside and wait for others to attack.
As a Jedi, Anakin had been an incredibly mobile and effective fighter. With his body back, that was probably his most effective fighting style, even if he was a little unpracticed.
On the other hand, if there was one thing he learned in his time as Vader, it was how effective and demoralizing it could be to let your enemies throw everything at you and just… ignore it.
"Enough," Letting his power run free, Anakin slashed another two projectiles, the small caliber bullets completely dissolving without even reaching his armor as he lifted his hand and started attacking.
Before the parahumans could engage him, Anakin focused on the shooters, not only their direction and feelings but their exact location, then he pulled.
With screams of pain and terror, 13 gang members were dragged towards him and out of their hiding positions. Two had just ducked to reload and his pull caused them to smash head-first against walls. He let them go, the concussion taking them out of the fight.
Another four fell out of second-floor windows, glass shattering as they were violently pulled out from their position, bodies hitting the street with painful impacts. Limbs broke, but they were still alive.
Of the remaining seven, three were shooting through small openings between buildings. They smashed against the wall, weapons flying out of their hands as they were pressed against the surface, unable to draw breath.
The last four were pulled through the floor, limbs scraping against the uneven ground as they were dragged towards him. They cried out as the asphalt ripped the skin off their arms and they lost their grip on their weapons.
The Force screamed at Anakin. Immediately, he dropped his grip on the gang members and lifted his lightsaber in front of his body, holding the handle with both hands as he braced himself.
Two beams of light hit his weapon, driving him back an entire foot as his boots slid on the asphalt, the split light parting around his body to hit the ground and the buildings behind him with enough strength to rip out entire chunks as he failed to fully deflect the beams.
Anakin had blocked hovertank shoots before, but he hadn't been expecting to do so today and it left the palm of his hands stinging from the effect.
From atop a building, a petite shining woman flew up into the airspace above, tracing bright motes of light behind herself as she regarded him. She was too bright for him to make out any details, and her form was already growing brighter, gathering strength for another attack.
From the same building, a shirtless man jumped out, the wind catching his descent and letting him hoover in place, a blue tiger mask covering his face. Behind him, six ghostly men followed, wearing full armor and holding long spears in their hands.
Stormtiger. Anakin couldn't help staring at the men who hurt his neighbor. He was tall and muscular, without any scars. It was a struggle not to kill him, simply crush his throath where he floated.
But no, Anakin would leave him for last. Lightsaber ready, Anakin strode towards them.
Stormtiger lifted his arms, hands open as he condensed eight 'claws' of wind before releasing them towards Anakin, followed closely by the six ghostly figures as they descended towards him, spears pointed.
Without even moving, the former Sith Lord hit them with a Force Push, causing the claws to explode in a blast of wind strong enough to flick his cloak back, but the projections were almost unaffected.
The Force screamed again and Anakin started to move.
Purity attacked. Having had time to gather her power, she released two beams of light that twisted around each other. Quickly growing almost as wide as she was tall, the beams flew towards him faster than a blaster bolt.
Anakin had already started to twist, but one of the beams was still going to hit him. With a flourish, he angled his lightsaber, reflecting said beam right back at the woman. The impact proved too much for his unstable lightsaber, the blade temporarily deactivating, it would take a second or two to recover.
Divided, the remaining beam hit the ground only a meter behind him, the asphalt exploding as it dug a giant crater on the street, dust, and debris obscuring his position, even if it couldn't move him.
Anakin frowned at his lightsaber —he really had to create a better crystal— then he clasped it to his waist.
Sensing the two parahumans closest to him had decided to attack, he didn't move but used a weak blast of Force to push the dust away from him, revealing the street.
The first attacker was almost on him, she wore a metal cage around her head and wielded two scythes in her hands. Anakin could feel her eagerness and confidence, as if she fully believed herself capable of dealing with his reflexes at close range.
Behind her, a metal wolf was forming, having taken a second longer to shift into his fighting form. Several layers of daggers, hooks, and other weapons flowed around the parahuman as if alive, increasing his size and covering his body in a large armor of spiked metal.
Hookwolf was almost finished changing, his body already on all fours and rushing at Anakin, quickly gaining on Cricket.
Anakin took a brief moment to look at the battlefield. Purity seemed to be gathering an even stronger attack but was currently holding back thanks to the other's proximity. Stormtiger too was gathering another blast of wind and the six projections were flying straight at him.
At the end of the street, two women stepped out from the corner. Already almost three stories tall, they wore plate armor and were still growing. Both wielded shields, but one had a sword while the other had a spear as they rushed at him.
Good. Killing Lung hadn't proved enough to convince people he should be left alone, maybe this would.
Anakin felt something start to affect his balance, not unlike Genosian sonic weapons, only far weaker and more insidious.
Glancing at Cricket, he flicked a finger, hitting her with a Force Push so strong it sent her flying at a car, her back breaking against the metal door as it folded around her body.
Hookwolf roared, a sound of metal against metal while he radiated rage and he pounced on him, the daggers that formed his fur elongated into swords as he prepared spear-like claws to rip into Anakin's armor.
Anakin lifted his arm, gripping the beast-like parahuman in the air with Force Telekinesis and closing a fist. Metal screamed, twisted, and snapped as the Force Crush pushed the weapons back into his body, turning the wolf into a crumbled ball.
Flicking his arm toward one of the rushing giantesses, Anakin threw the crushed parahuman at the first one with such speed she could barely lift her shield in reaction. Hookwolf nearly exploded against the defense, metal flying everywhere, but he could feel the man was still alive.
The impact sent the woman reeling back, shield bent out of shape and arm broken as she collapsed.
The giantess dropped her sword, her good hand digging into a nearby building in a hopeless attempt to keep her balance, leaving furrows on the cheap concrete of the walls before her back hit the ground, driving the air out of her lungs. Without stopping, her partner jumped over her to avoid tripping.
Opening the hand still pointed at them, Anakin released a strong Force Push. The impact hit the giant warrior woman midair, sending her flying back to fall nearly half a block away, tumbling another half a hundred meters before she finally managed to stop herself.
Force precognition warning him, Anakin leaped back over the crater, dodging some of Crusader's projections as they passed through the floor, momentum driving them forward.
Without anyone close to him, both flying parahumans released their attacks. With barely an effort, Anakin hit one of the condensed claws of air right as it was about to leave Stormtiger's hand and, at the same time, used Force Telekinesis to peel the asphalt from the crater, sending it flying at the incoming light beams.
The explosion was deafening, the condensed air sending Stormtiger flying back against a building. The parahuman managed to cushion the hit enough not to break anything, but the pain disrupted his concentration and he fell three stories down, alive but wounded.
Purity's twin beams of light were even larger this time, blowing through the asphalt of his makeshift shield as if it wasn't there, breaking it into pieces.
Anakin knew even if he dodged, the attack would hit the ground, destabilizing his footing and maybe even wounding him. Shifting his concentration, he focused entirely on Tutaminis and braced himself, lifting his hands to block both beams as they hit him.
The power hit the palm of his hands, melting holes through his gloves as he absorbed the attack until it ended, their bright light almost blinding him.
Crusader's projections had recovered from their failed lunge, the ghostly warriors simply letting the debris around them pass through their bodies as they rushed at Anakin while he was recovering.
Refocusing on his Force Precognition, he straightened his back and dodged, hitting the projections with a Force Push. They stumbled, faltering in their attack, but were otherwise barely affected as if they were merely reflections and not truly there.
With concentration, he felt he could affect them with telekinesis, but it would leave him open for a second.
Lifting a hand, Anakin gathered his power and released a stream of Force Lightning, the energy crackled around his hand, bright bolts of Force-empowered electricity striking at the projections and through them.
The attack finally managed to destroy the projections, the translucent forms fading into smoke, but more were already flying down from the rooftop.
"Impressive, most impressive," he spoke, looking up at Purity, the one in command of the attack. "Without preparation, I did not believe the Empire capable of forcing me to make an effort."
He could sense her apprehension, but the woman was stubborn and filled with misplaced anger. She knew what she was doing was wrong, but thought it was for a good reason, a necessary sacrifice.
For a brief moment, he felt her self-loathing, the part of her that was screaming she was fooling herself, that nothing that was promised would come true and she was throwing her last chance away by doing this.
Then that part was pushed back down and she steeled herself, believing it was too late to change.
Anakin sighed. He recognized her actions, they were far too familiar to him. She thought she had gone too far, that her path MUST be the right one because, otherwise, all she had done was for nothing.
Lifting two fingers, he gave the giant spear thrown at him by a recovering giantess a flick, changing its direction enough that the weapon flew to his left, hitting the ground and piercing two-thirds into the floor.
The owner had managed to regain her footing and started running at him again while her sister cradled a broken arm, an exposed bone taking her out of the fight.
"I can sense your hesitation, your lies, your desperation," Anakin said, looking up at Purity and seeing her glow falter. "Whatever your goal is, you know it cannot be achieved under men such as Kaiser. He plays with your so-called rules, ignores them whenever it suits him. His word holds no value. Whatever he promised you, you know it to be false."
The woman hesitated for a moment, but then she shook her head and shouted back. "Shut up, I'm not a kid you can trick or control!"
Around her, Crusader's new projections had briefly stopped, but they charged him again, spears ready. Unfortunately for the man, Anakin had enough uninterrupted time to concentrate on him.
With an effort of will, he dragged the man from the roof, the parahuman screamed in fear as he hit the railing, flipped over, and started free-falling before one of his projections caught him just three meters above the street.
Purity attacked Anakin before he could continue the attack. Having only started to gather her power, the laser beams were much smaller, barely 50 centimeters wide.
Pulling the lightsaber from his waist through the Force, Anakin gripped the handle with both hands and reignited the recovered blade, deflected both bolts straight at the rushing giantess, aiming for her leg.
"Menja!" Purity shouted.
The bolt hit the woman's armored foot, denting the metal, but she had already reached her full height and was several times tougher than normal while Purity's blast had been one of her weakest.
Menja was still hurt enough she started to limp slightly, but it barely affected her speed. Grabbing her sister's sword, she glared at him.
Anakin ignored them, frowning as he sensed the approaching cars.
With the commotion he had caused, Anakin was sure the transport would have changed routes, but the lead car was accelerating towards them, with the prisoner transport following closely after.
The lead PRT car smashed through some of the debris on the street, pushing the small boulders aside before sliding to a stop, blocking half of the street while the tall, armored prisoner transport stopped at its side.
Purity started to float towards Menja, her feelings growing worried as she too realized something was wrong. Crusader's remaining projections gathered around her without his direct command, acting almost as if completely independent.
"Retreat," Purity looked around, noticing that Stormtiger had managed to recover enough that he managed to float up to a rooftop. "Grab Hookwolf and Cricket, I think they're still alive, and run. I'll buy ti—"
Before she could finish, something hit Stormtiger, piercing through his weakened wind barrier, causing him to stumble back and fall to his knees, containment foam spilling around him.
Behind the PRT barricade, Miss Militia switched targets, her weapon changing shape as she shot at Purity, the glowing cape managing to twist aside enough that the beanbag hit her in the arm instead of center mass.
The double doors of the prisoner transport opened and, from inside, a large armor stepped out. It was initially on all fours, being both too big and too bulky to fit inside the vehicle standing up, but the pieces snapped back into place and it straightened.
Four meters tall, it had the head of a krayt dragon and the body of a super battle droid, its back sporting several sonic cannons.
Anakin could feel Purity's panic as she turned around to flee, but another parahuman stepped in her way, holding a spear that seemed to be made of lightning, the man raised a shield and pointed her way.
From the lead car, two PRT soldiers stepped out and pointed at him with rifles. From the back, another armored parahuman stepped out, a halberd held at his side.
"Understood, the operation is a go," Armsmaster said, his attention never leaving Anakin.
Anakin regarded the PRT and Protectorate members surrounding him. Through the Force, he could already feel a few unmarked cars approaching from the opposite direction, blocking the Empire's escape.
From them, he felt a wave of dedication and confidence, as well as the utter satisfaction of a plan going right.
He would have to raise his opinion of the local law enforcement leader. He had heard of how often parahumans escaped custody, but it seemed like Director Piggot had no intention of letting her chances go. This wasn't a prisoner transport, it was a counter-ambush.
Perhaps Miss Militia had not entirely disregarded his warnings about infiltrators.
Without warning, Anakin was invaded by a sense of urgency unlike any he had felt on this planet, whipping his head back towards ABB territory, he felt fear and anxiety flooding the fledgling Force Bond.
"Susanoo, Purity, drop your weapons and surrender, you're surrounded!" Armsmaster's amplified voice came from his armor.
Gripping his lightsaber tighter, Anakin stared at the man, his temper rising. "What have you done?"
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