//------------------------------// // Yin and Yang // Story: Jedi Exile // by makey101 //------------------------------// I spent the evening in my pleasant little cell in my meditative state. This wasn't so much for me to react to unseen threats, but to mask my presence a bit. I do not give off much of an indentation in the Force, but enough to be brought into the Academy for training. I spent my time there coming to grasps with my limitations. The other Padawans were lifting objects far larger than the ones I could control. I was reprimanded more than once for using my frustrations to give me the oomph I needed. Usually to destructive ends. Due to my unstable emotions and lack of power, I began to seek my power elsewhere. I delved into using what little Force I had to the most I could. It was around this time that I learned of a method one of the blind races used to Observe the fabric of the Force. I began to notice little "Gravity Wells" around people proportional to the raw Power they had in the Force. As well as how little mine was. I began exploring ways to manipulate my own "Well" how to perform more primal manipulations of the Force through pulses and wave functions. The most important thing I learned was how to mask my presence by, for lack of a better term, "Flattening" my Well. It was more like pulling the edges of the cloth to remove a crease. The only down side to this was that I had to concentrate a little bit on it and I couldn't really move fast. It was mostly useful for sneaking into the Holocron and to practice more...forbidden talents. My reverie was broken by a feeling of a Well. The kind of Well I have not felt since my incarceration on Korriban. By incarceration, I mean my capture and subsequent fall from sanity. I would have Fallen if it hadn't been for the prisoner in the adjacent... cell. Who had the same We-- Two. Thats new. I know They tend to travel in pairs, but they tend to be at each others throats. I'll never understand why opposites attract. I suppose it is in their Nature. "Is the prisoner awake?" The voice was muffled due to being just outside the cell block. "It has just been sitting there all night. I'm getting the willies from it." I couldn't help but smirk. I spent a week learning that particular Mind Trick. I assume the first speaker made a gesture because not another word was spoken before the outer door opened and two impressive ponies came in. I would have considered them adorable if it hadn't been for the Weight the pulled. The Force seemed to Bend and Quake at every hoof-fall. That was impressive. I was glad I had been making my presence through meditation by this point. I wouldn't want to start an incident by having an unknown Force Sensitive running amok. Especially with these Beings. They have enough in them to raise the sun each morning if they so wished. I opened my eyes. "You do me honor, Old Ones." I said, using a True Name. It wasn't theirs specifically, but the label I used rang with Truth that only the Force can provide. The blue one seemed taken aback by this. The white one, on the other hand, narrowed her eyes at me. "How did you come across this knowledge?" The white one said curtly. "You don't pull around that much of the Force without being a few millennia old." I flash a sleazy smile at the blue one. "And the years have been kind to you. You don't look a day over three thousand." The blue one scoffed. "Flattery will get you nowhere, Out-Worlder." Damn. She Labeled me. It always sends a chill down your spine. It only happens when you Label someone with the Truth. There can be no falseness in your speech or your words will fall upon their ears like water on rock. I tend to do it to screw with people. But in this case, It was so I couldn't ignore her seriousness. It is a lost skill that I discovered while rooting around in the less savory parts of the Jedi Holocron. I certainly spent a lot of time there. In any case, I gave a hearty laugh. "On the contrary! Flattery will get you everywhere!" I focused on the other one. "Ah, but where are my manners? I am Warden, Grey Jedi in Exile. It is a pleasure to an Old One, let alone an Old one and their Antithesis." The white one raised an eyebrow. "I am Princess Celestia, and this is my sister Princess Luna. Together we rule the nation of Equestria. The important question is, however, how you know what we are." I leaned back causally (if a bit irreverently). "Nobody makes that big a dent in the Force without going around the block a few thousand times." Celestia seemed to stifle a giggle for the briefest of moments. "Quite. However, your Labeling betrays you." I could tell that this one isn't going to let this go. "I ran into another Old One on a planet called Korriban. Nasty fellow. Fancied himself as the Lord of Lies." If this got a reaction out of them, I didn't notice. "And what connection to Lies did you have?" Luna asked with a hint of worry. "Not a pleasant one." I said rather curtly. "He was the one thing that kept me sane in the dungeon I was in. It turns out that his deception is as advertised. He convinced me to kill all of the acolytes that captured me to avenge my master." I hung my head, ashamed at how pleasant the memory was. "I ran into his Antithesis in an ancient tomb while hiding from Lies. This time, I only heard the Truth." I looked at Celestia's eyes. "I think I prefer the other guys lies." "Truth gave me some basic information on what Old Ones are and...other things that I didn't want to hear. He said that Old Ones are artifacts of the races to which they belong. They all tend to gravitate towards ideas over time and are Fated to be in conflict with their Antithesis. Which begs the question: what aspect are you?" Before either could answer, I turned my head towards Luna. "I see that you represent the night while your sister represents the day." I got up for the first time and stalked over to her. The sisters stiffened at my approach. I looked at her with a critical Eye. "I can smell Taint on you. It is not current, but I feel that you were at one time an Antithesis to your sister. Sometime recently." Slinking over to her sister, I study her features closely. "However, the way you move the Force is too symmetric. Each one of you is incomplete without the other. You are the Yin to her Yang. Just as the shadows prove the sunshine, so do you complete your sister. Now, Who are you?" "Harmony" They both said in unison. "And what of Disharmony?" "Trapped in a prison and locked away." Luna said proudly. "Your knowledge is commendable. But to the matter at hand. It is to my understanding that you have taken the lives of several ponies." Celestia gave me a withering glare. "I assure you that I have not murdered anyone on your planet. If anything, I seek a place to make up for the lives I have ended. I do not wish to bring the destruction nor the stagnation my kind is plagued with." "Swear it." Celestia quickly faced her sister. "Luna, why-" "Celestia, I have wronged many during my time as Nightmare Moon. I have seeked nothing but a way to make up for my past. You have done the same after what you did to me, Sister." The last word remained pregnant in the air. After several seconds, Celestia turned to me. "Very well. Swear upon your True Name that you will protect my little ponies." That was saying something. Another thing about Names is that saying your own held Power. By swearing upon your True Name, you wager your Power that you will keep your promise. This is fine for most people, but Force sensitives like myself are in real danger. I did not like the deal very well. However, it is my only option for gaining the trust of the rulers. A pissed off Old One is not fun to deal with. I have a first hand account on that one. "I, Barthantelus Androminasus, Grey Warden and Jedi Exile, Swear to protect the Ponies of Equestria until I leave this planet or the sword take me." Authors Note: I have been finding it very difficult to write this story. Part of it is that there is no strong sense of action or adventure going on. I have struggled to nut up the motivation to even start this chapter. Every time I do, I worry about how my portrayal of the Princesses is coming across and if the characters I do put in have motivations that are reasonable. Most of my ideas on where I want this story to go are in direct conflict with each other. However, this is a labor of love. I would want nothing more than to have someone else write a slice of life story focusing on a grey Jedi, but lets face it, its not going to happen. Therefore I have to write it. It is one thing to seriously want a story to exist, and quite another to actually write it. Please let me know what you think of my story (especially the reactions of the princesses). I read all of my comments and try to reply to all of them. You guys are seriously the reason I still make chapters.