Death. Treachery. Destruction. Evil.

The dead bodies littered the floor of the Jedi Temple. Flames from clone troopers’ blaster bolts engulfed the surrounding areas. Everything in the Great Hall had been destroyed. Armor from the Temple guards caught ablaze as they fell, their occupants now long gone from the world, their shells a reminder of what used to be contrasted against the forthcoming darkness. Echoes of the screams from fallen Jedi could still be heard long after their deaths, the painful sounds of death cascading throughout the empty Temple. Masters, Padawans, and younglings alike had all been slaughtered mercilessly.

Silverstream stood in the midst of all of it, having had come out of hiding after the 501st Legion had seemingly departed the scene. Her eyes prickled with tears and sobs came out of her as she surveyed the surrounding damage. Why? Why kill the younglings? Why kill anyone? They had done nothing. Who could be this cruel? She sat next to a smoldering, charred husk of a person with a white headdress. Upon closer inspection, she realized with a cry of despair that it was Katooni, one of the younglings, and her close friend. A look of horror was plastered on her face, forever remaining there as a large hole in her chest became visible. It had obviously come from a lightsaber, the only weapon that could make a circular cut like the one she saw. A Jedi had done this. But what Jedi would be so angry as to do something like this?

“Oh Katooni…” Silverstream sobbed, “Please no no no no no no…” She held the charred body in her claws, wishing that she had been there to save her. She hadn’t. She had been too scared to save the only friend she had in this galaxy. What kind of griff did that make her? Someone who had let their friends die because they had been too cowardly, that’s for sure. She screamed at the top of her lungs in anguish. She didn’t care that it might give her position away to the attackers. All she wanted to do was die. That was what she deserved. Here she was, faced with the destruction she had inadvertently caused by hiding instead of fighting. She could’ve saved them. But she didn’t.

As she cried and cried, Katooni’s body seemed to disintegrate like sand, signaling rapid decay. Silverstream just sat there, amidst all the chaos. She looked and saw stains of blood on her claws. It hadn’t been long since Katooni had died, and that all the more added to Silver’s guilt. Queen Novo had been right. Her family had been right. She didn’t deserve to live.

“Just kill me…” she whispered through tears. Suddenly, she heard heavy footsteps coming toward her. She resisted the urge to scream as several thousand clone troopers emerged from another room led by a figure in dark robes, his face partially obscured by shadow.

“Your wish shall be granted, Padawan.” Silverstream nearly had a heart attack. It was true. Qui-Gon had been right. Standing in front of her was none other than Anakin Skywalker, her mentor.

The clone troopers aimed their blasters at her, but Anakin waved them down with his hand. He regarded Silverstream as if she was some parasite, a far cry from how he had considered her just a few days ago. “I want to do this myself,” Anakin ordered the troopers, “Watch me.”

Silverstream tried to scramble way. She didn’t know why. She wanted to die, didn’t she? Perhaps it was an instinctual reaction, she didn’t know. But Anakin grabbed her using the Force. She kicked and fought until she was inches from Anakin’s shrouded face. Then, she froze in horror. His eyes were glowing a bright orange hue, the color of the Sith. It reminded her of how the Storm King’s eyes seemed to glow blue all those years ago when he had taken over Mount Aris. She remembered being scared, sobbing in her mother’s arms. But her mother wasn’t here. Not this time. She had no one to protect her.

Silverstream felt a choking sensation and a wave of nausea came over her. She struggled, but she couldn’t break free. The air seemed to crash down upon her, restricting her breathing. She felt her vision blur as she struggled to stay alive, trying anything to break free from his grip.

“Tell me,” Anakin ordered her, “Do you bleed?” His voice was sounding deeper now, more robotic. Anakin’s face gradually morphed into a black mask as he seemed to get taller. This was no longer Anakin Skywalker, the Chosen One and friend to the Jedi Order. This was Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith and heir apparent to Lord Sidious of the Galactic Empire.

He took out a blue lightsaber and stabbed Silverstream through the heart with it. All at once, her senses stopped. She dropped to the floor, feeling nothing upon impact, her last thoughts about her failure to save those she loved.

Darth Vader stood over his former Padawan, who he had just murdered in cold blood. His blue lightsaber turned red and he summoned it back to him. As the last remaining Jedi in the Temple died with a final breath, the victory of the Sith was at hand. He roared with triumph, the dark side fully overtaking his conscience.

It was time to report back to Darth Sidious what he had done.
———————————————————————————————————————————————
Silverstream awoke with a scream, cold sweat trickling down her face. She looked around frantically for any signs of the destruction, breathing a sigh of relief once she realized it was all just a dream. But it had felt so real to her. It had to be more than just a dream as why would she dream about that specifically?

Unless…

She realized with a startling sensation that what she had witnessed was more than just a dream. It was a premonition of what would happen if she failed to save Anakin from darkness. The Force was warning her that there was a ticking clock. She didn’t have long.

As she began to get out of bed, something stirred next to her. She turned to her left and saw Katooni asleep right next to her. Her headdress was off and Silver caught a glimpse of her long, jet black hair, now messy and matted from the night. Silverstream carefully pulled the sheets off, doing it slow so to not wake her friend, but Katooni was already waking up quickly. Sitting up, Katooni caught Silverstream looking at her.

Katooni blushed in embarrassment, “Sorry. I couldn’t sleep last night. I didn’t want to wake Petro or the others, so I came to you. You were the closest person I thought could protect me from…” she tailed off.

“From what?” Silverstream asked her.

Katooni sighed, “It was a nightmare. I’m so sorry, Silverstream. I didn’t mean to come in. You were in the dream, the Temple was on fire and…Master Skywalker was…”

“We had the same dream,” Silverstream deduced, “Katooni, I had the same dream too! Only…I saw you dead…I couldn’t do anything to save you…”

“That was where my dream ended!” Katooni’s eyes were wide with the realization, “It ended when I died…Silverstream, I think Master Qui-Gon was warning us through the Force. He mentioned yesterday that Master Skywalker turned to the dark side. We don’t have a lot of time.”

“I’m going to stop this.” Silverstream faced her, “Katooni, I’m going to train. Train harder than I’ve ever trained before in my life, here and/or in Equestria. I’m going to show Anakin that there is a life other than the dark side. I’ll try to help him get over his grief.”

“You think that’s what caused it?” Katooni asked, grabbing her headdress and putting it on.

“There’s only one way to find out,” Silverstream stated, “I’ll meet you by the living quarters after the first day. I want you to introduce me to your friends. I want to rebuild my life here.”

Katooni nodded, “I’m willing to help in anyway I can. Get out there and make Master Skywalker proud, Silverstream.”

Silverstream and Katooni got down from the bed and split off in separate directions. While Katooni headed to Petro’s room to wake him up, Silverstream was headed towards the Great Tree, which was at the heart of the Jedi Temple. Anakin had told her that was where her first lesson would begin.

As she headed outside, she passed by a couple younglings who waved hello to her. She waved back, determined to learn their names after the first lesson if she could find them again.

She arrived at the Great Tree, where Anakin was waiting patiently for her. His expression bore no emotion, and he had an air of calmness around him. Silverstream guessed he had just finished meditating before she had arrived.

“Welcome, Padawan,” Anakin greeted her, “I trust you slept well the previous night?”

Silverstream didn’t want to tell Anakin about his prophesied fate, not yet. She would only tell him if she was sure she couldn’t save him. Right now, she felt that he didn’t need to know about a fate that might not happen to him. She took a deep breath and smiled, “Good. I slept good.”

“Good,” Anakin repeated, “Because I’ve decided to give you a chance. Obi Wan convinced me to do such due to our bond and me ‘needing to move on.’” He said the last part with a hint of distaste, “But until you get knighted, we shall address each other as Master and Padawan respectively whilst training. Understood?”

“I understand, sir.” Silverstream answered him respectfully.

“Very well,” Anakin said. He looked at her straight in the eyes and shouted, “Do you want to learn the ways of the Force?!” His voice rang loud and clear across the vicinity with clear authority that even some other Jedi who were standing around had to turn and look.

“Yes sir!” Silverstream replied enthusiastically, feeling excitement build up in her. This was it. She was going to learn the ways of the Jedi.

“Then I AM your Master!!” Anakin declared, that authoritative voice again ringing loud and clear. Silverstream could swear that she was getting goosebumps.

“Aye aye, Captain!!” Silverstream grinned. She could hardly contain her excitement at this point. This was what the previous day was building up to. She would not fail like she had in the dream. She had heeded the warning, and she would make Anakin proud.

For the next 6 months, Anakin trained Silverstream in the ways of the Force. He taught her the 7 forms of lightsaber combat, how to move things with the Force using her mind, and how to use her instincts and emotions to serve the light. She excelled at meditation and even surprised herself with how fast she was able to master the training orbs.

Everyday, the same process of basic lessons would repeat before Anakin moved on to teaching the more advanced lessons. Silverstream and Anakin would practice fencing with their lightsabers in the afternoon, and early evening. There was barely any time for breaks, not like she wanted them. She wasn’t going to be wimpy. No matter how much she tired out, the galaxy was counting on her. So, she pushed through even though sparring was not her favorite. She would constantly get cut up from lightsaber strikes when she failed to dodge or parry the attacks with her own. She would always go to bed limping and sporting some sort of bandage.

But eventually, she caught on to Anakin’s form of lightsaber combat and she began using his own techniques against him, which he somewhat begrudgingly approved of. As long as she was learning, that was all that mattered to him. He taught her how to utilize passionate combat over reckless and angry combat. Using these lessons, she learned to focus her mind logically and that in turn helped focus her fighting style. She would use her instincts to predict what moves Anakin would make next and she would act accordingly. Half the time, she was wrong and that resulted in more cuts and bruises. But in the other half, she was able to accurately predict his next move and either go on offensive or defensive.

Next up was learning how to levitate stuff using the Force. At first, they started with rocks and pebbles. Then they went to full on starships and cruisers. Initially, she failed at that advanced form of levitation, but one day, she finally was able to lift an entire Naboo freighter.

“Haha! It worked!” Silverstream was grinning triumphantly at her own accomplishment. She had finally done it! Anakin would surely be proud of her, right? Well, he was. In fact, he was very proud of her. But he didn’t want the success to get to her head, so he simply said:

“Very good. Let’s move on.”

This reaction disappointed her greatly and Anakin knew it. But little did she know, when she wasn’t looking at him, Anakin was beaming. He had forgotten what it was like to have a Padawan always seeking his approval. Obi Wan had been right. It was refreshing, and Silverstream was an amazing student.

By the sixth month of training, Silverstream was excelling at almost everything. She was able to beat him at sparring 95% of the time, and now she could move entire starship fleets with a thought if she wanted to. She was a master at lightsaber combat, she knew how to focus her mind and empty it if she needed to, and she could feel the Force flowing through her veins when she tapped into her unlocked potential.

If only her family could see her now. They would be so proud of her. No longer was she the “air-headed” and “unladylike” hippogriff from before. She was a full on Jedi-in-training, learning the ways of the living energy that bound the galaxy together, and she was fast becoming one of the most powerful Jedi ever, helped by Anakin’s unique style of teaching that differed from Obi Wan’s and other Jedi’s methods. He had taught her to embrace both the light and the darkness within her, but ultimately knowing which side to choose in the end.

‘General Seaspray would be spitting out his kelp fritters if he saw me now,’ Silverstream thought to herself, ‘I’m not a burden anymore. I am a Jedi.’ And it was this new aura of self-confidence, which she would carry until the day she died, through thick and thin. No matter what troubles came her way, she would be able to overcome it.

One day, Anakin called her over to the Great Tree after an hour break to talk with him. She was initially confused as to what he wanted and a part of her was scared that she had gotten in trouble, but Anakin assured her that she wasn’t in any trouble.

He was smiling when she arrived and it was the first time she had seen him smile in public since training began. He faced her and said, “Silverstream, thank you.”

“What happened?” Silverstream asked him, sitting down cross cross in front of him, “What did I do?”

“You changed my life,” Anakin explained to her, “I was afraid of telling you prior because I was worried you would let the praise get to your head, but I think you’ve earned it now. You’ve helped me move on from losing Ahsoka. I was afraid of having a Padawan after she left because I thought they would all leave…but you didn’t. You stayed and worked harder than I even expected. Even when you tired out, you still kept going and I didn’t expect that. I know I was pushing you a lot during those past months.”

“If it wasn’t for you pushing me, I never would’ve had the same drive to excel as I did,” Silverstream told him, “I needed that confidence boost. And you never needed to tell me at all, and I’m glad you didn’t until now. Just the fact that you never gave up on me was enough. I kept fighting and pushing forward because I wanted to make you proud of me.”

“Why me though?” Anakin asked, “You went above and beyond what I expected of you all for me. I’m curious as to why this was so important to you. I’ve never seen anyone so committed like you since Ahsoka, and trust me, I’ve been the substitute teacher for a lot of younglings’ classes.”

Silverstream sighed deeply. She still couldn’t tell him the truth about her visions. He didn’t deserve to know yet. But she could tell him the other reason, “I just…wanted to make you proud, that’s all. Back in my world…I was told by my family that I was…too undisciplined and too hyperactive. My friends tried to reassure me that I was not like that, but I know I was. So, I wished for something to happen to me that would force me to confront my perspectives and what I believe in. I didn’t want to feel like a burden on anyone anymore, and I certainly felt that way. The next day, I was sent here after an accident on a field trip. I wanted to make you proud because if anyone could do it, if anyone could make me not me, it was you. You and I have a close bond in this world, and I just wanted to mean something to someone. For once. I saw that chance with you after I got reassigned. If…that makes sense.” It was true. She did want to mean something to Anakin. And she did now.

Anakin understood, “Silverstream, you will never be a burden on me or anyone. If anyone in your family said that to you, then I’m glad you got sent here now because I do not like anyone who tries to bring down someone else I care about. What kind of drugs was your family on anyway?!”

“I don’t know,” Silverstream admitted, “But it’s okay, because I’m no longer that gr-that person. I’m a Jedi now, and I feel much more confident here than I did back home. If this is going to be the rest of my life and I never get to go home, I don’t mind anymore. Because I actually have a purpose here with you. I’m glad I was able to change your life. That’s the highest honor I’ve ever gotten.”

Anakin could feel tears prickling at the corner of his eyes, hearing Silverstream’s story. He motioned for her to come, “Come here, Silverstream.” She did and he embraced her. She hugged him back, feeling all the warmth course through her. She didn’t feel alone anymore. She could actually save him. She could save everyone she had grown to care about in this galaxy. Today was the start of a new beginning.

Once they let go, Silverstream wiped her own tears away, “So…more training now? I’m up for it.”

Anakin laughed, “Of course you are. No, I think you deserve a break for the rest of the day. Why don’t you go see Katooni and the others? I heard that they’re waiting for you inside to congratulate you.”

“Congratulate me?” Silverstream asked, “Why?”

“Well, your knighting ceremony will be in a couple days,” Anakin told her, “I was able to convince the Council to do it based on all the progress you’ve made. Frankly, Master Windu was the only objection because of course he was. Even Master Yoda felt you deserved it, which was a big surprise, considering he’s the most practical one.”

Silverstream couldn’t believe her ears, “Really? That’s so awesome! Thank you, Master! I’ll go see them right away!”

“Please,” Anakin stopped her momentarily, “Call me Anakin.”

“Oh, okay!” Silverstream agreed, “Thank you, Anakin! I’ll go see them right away!” And with that, she unfolded her wings and sped off in the direction of the Jedi Temple.

Anakin shook his head, chuckling to himself, “I told Silverstream to call me by my first name before. So, why does it still feel weird?” He shrugged, “Meh, 6 months will do that to you. Now to find Obi Wan…”
———————————————————————————————————————————————
Silverstream flew inside the Temple at top speed where Katooni, Petro, Gadoni, Zatt, Byph, and Gunji were waiting for her. They were all sitting down, talking to one another about their days. She skidded to a halt before she could bump into them.

Katooni was the first to notice her, “Oh, Silverstream! There you are! Did you hear what the Council said?”

“You’re being promoted, Silver! Whoop whoop!” Petro declared proudly, “I say that promotion is well earned, how ‘bout you guys?” Everyone else agreed. Gunji roared his approval, beating his paws on his chest.

“Thanks,” Silverstream thanked them, “I couldn’t have done it without you all. Especially you, Katooni. I’ll make sure to mention you at the ceremony.”

“You don’t have to, Silverstream,” Katooni told her, “Just be proud of your accomplishments. You earned this and no one else. We’re all very proud of you.”

Everyone came together into a group hug and that was when Silverstream knew, she truly belonged. After that, she flew out of the Temple, flying in circles, and shouting with unfiltered joy.

This was her home now, and she belonged here. Nothing could go wrong now.

Author's Note

Famous last words. Well, this was the longest chapter I’ve ever written. I have to say, writing this chapter was scary (the vision part), epic (the training part), and emotional (the last parts) all at the same time. Silverstream’s back to her old self again, that’s good. Honestly, there was only so much I could do with her being scared and brooding all the time in the previous chapters that this was a nice return to form, wouldn’t you say? Again, feel free to leave feedback as I would really appreciate it. Next chapter brings us back to Equestria for two more chapters as the ramifications of the Canterlot incident fully set in. Stay tuned!

Also, here’s the link to the song that fits with the training montage upon re-reading:

Flight of the Silverbird by Two Steps From Hell
https://youtu.be/n-Dh3ftkRAs