Sorry about the long wait! Right now I'm working on four stories (plus two ideas) and a new cover for my other published book, so I'm a little spread thin 😅. Anyways, it's a little short, but J figured I would go ahead and throw in a quick chapter so I don't keep y'all waiting!

     It had been several more hours, and the sun was beginning to peek out of the horizon. Ahsoka was grateful for this; the long hours she had spent traveling through the night had caused her to catch a chill. Since Togrutas naturally preferred warmer weather, Ahsoka could not wait for the beams of light to shine down on her.

The Jedi Padawan had reached the far edge of the prairie, and now all that was left was the mountain ridge. She didn't know whether to be excited or dismayed, since the rocky and steep mountains promised to be quite the hike.

She paused, sitting down for a moment to take her first break since she had left Caceryn. As she greedily downed some of the cool liquid, Ahsoka began to think. What did the place she was looking for even look like? How would she be able to find it in the broad mountains?

Trust in the Force, Ahsoka willed herself. After all, it had proven to be trustworthy over the last few days. If it wasn't for it, she would probably not even be standing where she was right now.

With that, Ahsoka brought herself to her feet and forced herself to look up the mountain. Though there wasn't a part that looked easy, she managed to pick out a path that was manageable. She followed it as it wound up the side of the mountain, then cut around to the front, then had a really steep incline. For someone like Caceryn, this would've been extremely difficult. However, since Ahsoka had enhanced agility from both her bond with the Force and the Mortis protectors, jumping to and fro was a piece of cake.

The path eventually wound its way to the backside of the mountain, away from any prying eyes that might be onlooking from the prairie. To her dismay, there was not a single building in sight. Gauging from what the Force was relaying to her, the place she was looking for was ahead of her. At least she didn't have to dig into the ground.

There was some bit of good news to it though. From the faint rays of dawn that spilled between the mountains, a path of stepping stones was revealed. Well, almost stepping stones. However, these were spaced so far apart that the only way to make each step was to use a Force jump.

This must be the pathway to the building, Ahsoka thought to herself as she headed towards the closest stone, why else would they be spaced so far apart?

She catapulted herself into the air, carefully calculating her jump to where she landed on the dead center of the next stone. She repeated this for about 30 or so more times, snaking her way up and around the side of the mountain. Finally, several sweat droplets later, Ahsoka had managed to wind her way around the mountain.

And what she saw completely shocked her.

The backside of the mountain she was standing on was one of the several that created a circle. In the middle of the ring of mountains, a perfectly round valley was formed. However, it wasn't exactly the mountains that shocked her. Instead, she was in absolute awe of the structure that was in the center of them. It was a magnificent temple, similar to the one on Coruscant yet nearly triple in size, that towered above the ground on stilts. The stilts allowed it to be so high that bridges branches off the side of the temple, connecting it to the middle of all they other mountains. While the sides did look a little worn from countless seasons of sun and rain, the building itself was still in incredible shape. Pillars of stone and mahogany wood encircled the temple, purely adding to its grand presence.

Yeah, I think that's it, Ahsoka internally joked as she tested the footing on the bridge that connected mountain she was on to the Temple. Thankfully, the footing was solid and the strong metal and wood showed no signs of budging, so she hastily made her way across the path.

The Temple only grew more jaw-dropping as she made her way closer. She had never known that the Gray Jedi could have had such an impressive base.

And to think that they're all gone, Ahsoka thought sadly. For a brief moment, she could feel pains shooting through not only her body, but her Force connection as well. However, instead of screams, determined shouts rang out, "For the galaxy! For balance!"

Ahsoka fell to her knees, dropping her luggage beside her and raggedly panting. She had felt severs in the Force before, but nothing compared to how real and depressing this was. Countless deaths...all so sudden...she couldn't handle it anymore. Ahsoka felt as though she was going mentally insane.

"Aghhh!" Ahsoka shouted, clutching her head in her hands. By now, her yells were echoing through the valley and warm tears traced paths down her orange and white cheeks. The pain was so tangible, he had felt as though she had been dying as well. However, much to her relief, the grip the past souls on her began to fade away. Ahsoka took several steadying breaths, trying to get a grip on her emotions. All the years she spent trying tp train herself to keep them in check were practically thrown out of the window.

Suddenly, a mental weight fell upon her shoulders. For the first time in a long time, Ahsoka knew what she was supposed to do. What she was destined to do. No, the Force didn't choose her to bestow the title of Gray Jedi to her for no reason.

Ahsoka shifted her position to kneeling. Bowing her head in respect to the Temple, she whispered, "I will carry on the legacy. Your sacrifices will not be in vain, and I will make sure they aren't if it's the last thing I do."

Then, with a newfound determination, Ahsoka rose. A fierce fire burned within her eyes. She did not fight for the Jedi. She did not fight for the Sith. She did not fight for the light. She did not fight for the dark. She fought for balance, for the Force.

Ahsoka had taken a quick tour through the abandoned Temple. As soon as she entered, she was met with a grand hall, walls towering around her and a statue of a scale in the center. Doors were scattered along the wall, with only two of which she had entered.

The first had led her to a room with a multitude of beautifully carved tables and seats, along with something of a  kitchen to the side. Assuming that it was the cafeteria, she retraced her steps to the main hall and entered the second door. From there, she followed the second hallway to a set of stairs. They winded upwards tightly, so Ahsoka assumed they were went to the top of the building. Sure enough, they stopped at a room that was fairly empty and high up. Before exploring the room any further, the Togruta gazed out of one of the many windows.

From up here, she had a vast view of the valley and mountain ridge. She understood now why the Gray Jedi would want to house themselves here. Not only were they away from the public eye, but they also had a perfectly serene landscape to help them remain peaceful and calm. While the Jedi Temple's Room of a Thousand Fountains came pretty close, nothing could top the view of this room.

What was this room, anyways? Ahsoka allowed her gaze to be drawn around her surroundings. The room was completely empty, save for a few raised platforms by the windows. Then, she realized something about those platforms. On top of the platforms were mats. One top of the mats were ancient Force signatures.

This was the meditation room, Ahsoka realized. Somehow, even though she wasn't actually looking for any room in particular, she knew that she had found what she was looking for. She sat down on the platform closest to her, staring out the window. It was so peaceful; Ahsoka was sure she could stay here forever.

Then, remembering what meditation was for, Ahsoka forced her thoughts to slow down and tune in to the Force. However, before she even closed her eyes, she felt as though one of the Mortis entities was already with her. Sure enough, she felt something exiting her body, though not necessarily in a manner that hurt. It was one of the orbs that had phased into her when she first spoke to the Son, Daughter, and Father.

The orb began to stretch and dance around, finally taking the form of the Daughter. With a slight frown, she looked at Ahsoka.

"Well, you certainly took your time in contacting me again. Any later and the mission would've been ruined."

Ahsoka wanted to fire a snippy comment back at her, but ultimately held her tongue. She had to learn how to treat the Daughter with the respect she deserved.

"My apologies. What is it you wished to speak to me about?"

"There had been a threat to your mission...and I need you to extinguish it. Your friend, Barriss is her name I believe, has began to fall to the dark side. If you do not console her now, she will do awful things and you will be held for blame, compliments of the Jedi."

"The Jedi blame me for something I didn't do?" Ahsoka scoffed. While they had their flaws, she thought that they shared a larger bond of trust than that.

"Ahsoka, do not let them blind you like they have before. Listen to me, or you will be left in a very bad situation."

At this, Ahsoka looked away from the Daughter. The Togruta didn't want her to see the weakness and sorrow that was evident in her eyes. The Jedi had so easily blamed her for an act she was innocent of? She thought that they trusted her more than that. Then again...in their eyes she was just a mere padawan that held no importance.

"Ahsoka, do not let this information go to your head. Instead of being angry at the Jedi for their flaws, show them compassion and guide them to the light instead. If you allow this to drag you down, it will affect how well of a warrior you can be. While emotions are important to feel, do not let them take control," the Daughter said softly. While she was usually not overly kind, she did levitate to the Togruta and place a hand on her shoulder. Ahsoka acknowledged her words with a quivering smile.

"Of course. Although, how do I contact Barriss?"

"Concentrate on your friend, Ahsoka. Think of all the time you have ever spent with her. Imagine that there is a Force bond between the two of you, connecting each other through the flow of energy," the Daughter instructed, watching Ahsoka allow her eyes to close and her tense body to relax, "that's it. Now, can you sense that bond?"

A moment of silence ensued as Ahsoka reached into her feelings. Numerous emotions swirled around: happiness, determination, fear, sadness, and anger. She sifted through them, trying to narrow in on those that replicated her experiences with the Mirialan.

Finally, she felt an almost tangible connection between her and Barriss. It was friendhsip, something she had never really been allowed to feel before. Now though, she could reminisce in the bond without feeling like she was betraying the Jedi Code. After all, it wasn't her code anyways.

"I can," Ahsoka stated firmly, mentally latching on to the connection.

"Good. Now follow that bond until the other end with all of your energy. If you do so correctly, you will be able to kind of project a Force hologram to talk to her. Hurry, Ahsoka. Time is of the essence."

     Okay, yeah, that was really short. I mean, it's a chapter though. I should be getting more out soon, but I need to focus on "A Ripple In Time" first since I haven't updated in a while. See you later!