Dear Mom

[Vora Kaar]

A blur of movement raced through the market. A female frame lanced through the crowd as she was rushing home. As we watch her race past many others, a smile is clearly plastered upon her face. One that she had been waiting for a long time coming. One that could be felt over the years.

The years I have waited to be able to run home, and meet my dad and be able to talk to him for as long as I want. Drawing closer, I slowed down and fixed my long white hair. I came to a simple jog that slowly came to the front door of the house. As I came to a stop, I breathed in. I felt so good being able to do this for once. Opening the door, My smile left my face.

My house was ransacked. Everything was upturned and thrown about. Whoever was here was looking for something. Carefully reaching for the lightsaber on my hip, I brought the hilt in front of me as I went from room to room. I couldn't tell if anything was stolen, but the game system, my computer devices, and even my speeder was still here. Looking around I tried to find anything to figure out why this was done. At that moment, I heard a creaking at my door. Turning around lightning fast, I raced into the living room to see my father standing there. His lengthening silver hair and tall frame was completely surprised at me. He reached for his own saber as I had mine out.

"What is the meaning o-"
"I don't know. I came home just a minute ago."

Walking over he put his saber away at the same time I did. Wrapping his arms around me, the large frame of my father completely enveloped me. I had heard stories of Darren Shaw. The White Knight, the Outcast, and the Dark Jedi who never was in one place for long. Even with me, he was the same. I learned to enjoy my limited time with him.

As he let me go, all I could think about was how this moment was supposed to be much better. Bowing my head. He used the edge of his finger to pull my chin up to look at him. Even as I did this, I just stared at him as though my pet had just perished.

"Its okay, we will figure out who did this. Check to see if it's still in storage."

Nodding my head, I walked into the back room. Opening the closet from its half open state, and knelt down. My heart dropped as the safe that was supposed to be there was gone. I felt angry that this was the one thing the person stole from me. It was the one reason I wanted to live. The one reason why I wanted to be a force user, and explore the galaxy. I will find it. Why?

Because it belonged to my mother.

 

[Vora Kaar]

The crystal that belonged to my mother was worth everything to me. It was the greatest thing that I had. Darren still held onto it for me because I had a bad habit of losing it. It was something that I would die over. He and I both knew that. My mother had gotten this when I was born. A little box that I had never opened. Darren knew what was inside, but I didn't. Dad told me I would have to open it soon, or I would never be able to find her. I had to find her. Even as I knelt there, I cried over the loss of what was mine.

I could hear my father walking through the hall and entering my room. Walking over he knelt down next to me and just wrapped his arms around me. We just sat there for a few moments. Feeling his warm arms around my body. His soothing voice saying it will be okay. Rocking back and forth to comfort me like a little kid. Slowly, he turned me around to face him. Closing the distance between us, he placed his forehead against mine.

"I love you Anora. I wish I could help you, but you need to find out where it went. Use your gift, and try to become better from it."
"I... I can do it."
"Hun, You have to. To find your mother, You need to be able to track her. Thats why I trained you. Go and find whoever took it from you."

Standing up, he released me. Walking out of the room, he turned back before he tossed something at me, and walked away. Before I knew what he threw at me, I caught it to find his lightsaber in my hand. My fathers lightsaber. I looked up to try and follow him, but he wasn't even in the house anymore. He was just gone. Even closed the front door behind him. Looking down at it, I smiled and nodded my head once. I was his Legacy, and I will find my mother.

Returning to the room, I knelt down and focused upon the force. Closing my eyes, I breathed in and easily found the markings of a darker individual. I had my hand touched down to where the safe had once been. I could feel my heart burning as I seemed to watch in real time some being picking up the safe and walking away from it. I could feel their markings everywhere. I could feel the person in the force. I knew where they were headed.

I raced out through the front door and grabbed my speeder. Starting the vehicle with a wave of the hand, I had punched the throttle before my leg was completely on the other side of the bike. I could feel my eyes burning as I saw a orange blur through the city. I followed it. Tracking it as I continued to focus on the force.

I could feel their essence. Dark, yet they held some light. I flowed in and out of traffic not caring that I was wearing any protective gear, nor that the beeps of horns that yelled at me. I kept going. Trying to follow this afterimage of what could only be someone stealing from me. It was after I found this image stopped in a warehouse. One that was strange to me. I had never been here before. I traveled all over the city before. Why was this different?

Getting off the speeder, I let my focus drop and turned off the vehicle. Drawing out my own lightsaber, I just held the hilt in my hands. My fathers hanging on my side. What got to me was this weird feeling like I didn't belong. As though someone was watching me. Entering this warehouse, I just found shelves and shelves of useless junk. Old trophies, engine parts. A few speeder bikes. Even what looked to be a speeder that would have cost a crap ton back in the day. Now it was rusted and breaking apart.

I heard a scraping sound. One like nails on a board. Harsh and cruel to my ears. Moving silently over towards the sound, I made sure to keep my hands ready for any kind of attack. Looking around the corner, I found a man decked out in a full suit of armor. Igniting the saber in my hand, the brilliant blue blade lit up the area in its glow as I yelled out.

"You have taken what belongs to me. I want it back."

 

[Vora Kaar]

At the snap of the lightsaber blade, The man turned around. The blue blade reflecting in his visor as he raised his hands. Me standing there, I leveled it at his chest. Backing up as far as he could to get away from the weapon. Pointing to the safe that was sitting on the table, and scratch marks all over the front as though he thought breaking it open with brute force was the way to go. His voice seemed to be trembling as he pointed to it as well.

"Look, I was just trying to make some extra cash. If you want the thing then take it."
"I highly doubt that."
"What?"
"My house was completely destroyed, looked through when I have thousands of credits worth in game and entertainment systems. Yet you go for the safe hidden in my room, under pile of clothes so deep its a mountain. You lie."
"So you caught me. I didn't want it for the extra change. But I know who you are Anora."

My eyes widened. As soon as he said my name, I knew I was not in for some random thief. I had this feeling as though there was something to my right. That I needed to move now. NOW! as I took a huge step backwards, a vibroblade swung past my face and slammed into the lightsaber cutting itself in half. I twisted around to pierce whatever was there. The droid powered down as I turned behind me. Another was there holding a rifle. About to pull the trigger as I cut at the gun.

The barrel fell to the ground and I used the force to push it through the warehouse and out into the street. I spun around towards the man only to see a blaster pointed point blank at my forehead. His helmet twisted to the side, and I could hear the sly smile on his face as he told me to drop the weapon.

"Think you force users are so great, and powerful don't ya? Using powers and weapons that are lighter than air...."

The man started to go onto a rant as I dropped the lightsaber. He was standing there. Yelling at me through his visor. While he did that, my hand came up and tried to smack the weapon out of his hand, I did it, and got the weapon away, only to see that a second gun had been pulled on me. How could he move so fast? He just let me take it from him and had another ready? Damn. I tried to get out of this. His rant got even more furious, when I closed my eyes. He yelled at me for being a fool to believe in some mystical force. So I started talking.

"The force is not some mystical thing. Its real. I can feel it. Many others can feel it. Thats why there were Jedi and Sith and wars fought over its balance."

As I spoke, I cleverly moved my lightsaber behind the man's foot slowly. angling it up from where it was, I brought the weapon up towards about the center of his chest,

​"It can do many things that you cannot understand. It can allow me to manipulate just about anything. Just. Like. This."

As I uttered the word this, the lightsaber activated.

 

[Vora Kaar]

The bright blue lightsaber blade erupted through the man's chest. He slowly looked down as his weapon dropped. I took it from his hands just in case he tried to do anything shifty. Looking back up at me, I could just see his head tilt. Reaching out, I grabbed the man, wrapping my arms around him, I turned off the saber and pulled the weapon to my side. Letting his body drop to the floor with a solid thud. I could just not understand how he knew that was where he needed to look to find what belonged to my mother.

Walking over his body, I clipped the lightsaber to my belt. Taking a hold of the safe, I closed my eyes. Breathing in gently as I reached to the safe, and input my birth date. Hearing a solid click, I opened the safe to see a small box. One that was wooden, and held together with a very small latch. Smiling a little, I was about to open it when I heard a snap of a lightsaber behind me.

Turning around slowly, I saw a female in barely any armor. A red lightsaber angled out towards me and a second hand out to ask me to put the box in it. Shaking my head, I put the box behind my back. I could hear the chuckling of the woman. Her voice with an accent I had never heard of before.

"Awww. Cute girl getting her precious box from dear old mom?"
"How did... You knew about this. You knew where it was. How?"
"Little girl, I am not someone you want to mess with. So why don't you just hand that over, and we will call it a day."
"No."
"No? Hun, you don't even know what is in that box. You don't even know how much that costs."
"Its priceless to me. It means more than you will ever know."
"Oh I do girl. And I intend to take it from you. Hand it over, or I will take it from you."
"No."

The instant I said no, I held the box with my left hand and in my right hand was my own saber as it snapped to life. Blue facing off against the red. It felt like a Jedi and Sith fighting one another. I have been training my entire life for this fight. Where I would have to fight against a force user. I closed my eyes and breathed in as the lady charged. Opening them, I reacted faster than she imagined.

My blade coming up to come to meet hers head on with the same strength she had. I could hear her growl through the mask she wore. We traded blows back and forth. Having our lightsabers clash as we moved back and forth upon the floor. Pushing her with the force, She was thrown backwards through the shelves and slammed up against the wall. Cuts marking all over her skin. Yet as I watched before my very eyes, the wounds healed up as I drew closer. Was this natural, or was she healing herself as she fought?

I could see the smile through her eyes. I knew she was going to be a fight that I was going to dread. Gearing up, I held on tightly to the box as I ran. Turning off the lightsaber, I ran from the woman. I could hear her yelling as she chased after me. The screaming picked up till my ears were popping and hurt. I tried to cover my ears the best I could as I ran. It was then, I could feel a yank on the box. I turned around just in time to see the woman grabbing a hold of the box.

I just turned around and ran for it. Smiling as I did so.

Reaching into my pocket, I held a blue crystal within my hand, One that my mother had given to me. As I slipped it back into my pocket, I could hear the screams of the woman as she had lost what she tried so hard to get. While I had the box behind my back, I used one hand to open it, and slip it into my pocket and close the box before making her think I had it on me.

That was a skill that she didn't have. deception.

 

[Vora Kaar]

I was tired. After running a few blocks away, I grabbed a speeder that I would bring back as I told the man it was an emergency, and rode it the rest of the way home. Watching behind my back. Making sure that the woman didn't follow me. As I brought the speeder up, the garage opened. Inside was my dad. Standing there in front of me. Bringing the speeder to a stop, he walked over and held his hand out. I took it for a moment to aid myself up off of the speeder. After doing so, he motioned for me to walk inside. When I did, I found that in the kitchen, upon a table were various parts. Even from here I could tell they were lightsaber parts. But these were pieces that were brand new. Expensive. Looking to my father, I was about to contest that he didn't need to buy these for me when he shook his head. I knew that once his mind was up, there was nothing I could do to change it.

Moving into the room, he sat me down on one of the stools, and then held his hand out. I looked at him and gave him my hand. Was he wanting to hold my hand? Answer was no with his dropping of my hand, and further holding his hand out. Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out the blue crystal. It shone in the light like nothing I had seen before. Placing it into his hand, he then sat it on the table. And reached around me for his lightsaber. Taking it, he sat it on the table as well.

Looking over, I watched him as he focused upon the lightsaber and the crystal. I could tell with the lightsaber taking itself apart and the crystals from his lightsaber coming out to circle the blue one in the center. I watched as the man than let all the crystals settle to the table. Gently, he reached for my hand, and pointed to it. Looking to him, he nodded his head. Reaching out gingerly, I picked up the crystal. I could feel the pulsating within the lightsaber crystal. I could feel it. I knew it. I... love it.

Standing up, my father then left the room. I knew what I had to do. I had to complete the one thing left for me to claim myself worthy of traveling out into the galaxy.

Create a lightsaber with what was given to me by my father, my mother, and held together with my own strength. Moving to stand in front of the table, I picked three of the crystals. A white one, the blue one from my mother, and another that was provided for me. Focusing on all of them, I tried to think of something to help me concentrate. I didn't know what to think. So, I dug into what I could last remember of my mother.

It seems like forever ago that I remember being held. Cuddled with someone under the blanket. Feeling safe and secure. I could hold onto her as tight as I wanted, and I would never be alone. The feeling of a mother holding you is unlike anything else in this world. She meant so much to me at that time. Being able to feel the warmth. Letting her leave for a moment and return with treats or a snack, only for her to run her hand through your hair. It felt so good to do that.

But as I had these thoughts, I could feel a hand on my shoulder. Looking up behind me, I could see my father's hand. Looking up to him, he nodded to my left. I realized I was on the ground. Like I had been sleeping. Getting up, I looked on the table to see a lightsaber. As I reached for it, it called to Darren.

"Keep this close to you. The crystals in here create one powerful blade. The one your mother gave you. The one in the box? It's a very unique one. One that is rumored to strengthen its user within the force. It's name is the Mantle of the Force. Take care of it, because it belonged to your mother."
"Yes father. I promise."