章 21: C21 Lightsaber! (2/2)

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Peter stood before the figure of his father, Ego, feeling a whirlwind of emotions that he struggled to keep in check. The initial fear that gripped him swiftly morphed into a fiery anger, remembering the pain Ego had caused him through the death of his mother.

However, as quickly as these feelings arose, they were replaced by skepticism. How could his father possibly find him here, in the depths of an ice cave on Illum?

It didn't take long for Peter to reach a conclusion: this was no real encounter with his father. It had to be a trial the cave was putting him through, a test of his emotional control and resilience, or some other nonsense.

This realization cooled his anger and sharpened his focus. The Peter who might have once charged forward in blind rage was no more; his training under Revan had honed his ability to master his emotions. At least to a certain degree.

"Nice try, but you're not real. So how about you f*ck off?" Peter said, his voice steady, a defiant glint in his eyes. "I've got a Kyber crystal to find and a lightsaber to make, so off you go. Bye bye now~" He shooed his 'father' away.

Ego, or the illusion of him, didn't vanish at Peter's words. Instead, he walked closer, a smirk playing on his lips before he suddenly slapped Peter across the face. "Does that feel real to you?" Ego challenged, his voice carrying a hint of amusement.

Peter reeled from the unexpected physical contact, feeling the sting on his cheek. For a brief moment, his resolve wavered as he touched his face, his mind racing. But he quickly regathered his thoughts, sticking firmly to his belief. This had to be part of the trial.

After all, Ego had no way of knowing Peter's whereabouts.

Focusing on the task at hand, Peter considered his next move. If acknowledging the illusion for what it was hadn't dispelled it, perhaps there was another lesson to be learned here.

Maybe the trial was about facing his fears?

Deciding on a different approach, Peter squared his shoulders, meeting the gaze of the figure before him. "Alright, let's get this over with. What do you want from me? How do I pass?"

"Were you born with a defect or something?" His 'father' asked, clearly goading him. "I'm not some illusion, Peter…"

Ego's refusal to admit he was an illusion only stoked the fire within Peter. Yet, he knew well that this trial demanded a path without violence. This was a Jedi's trial, after all, not a Sith one.

Peter racked his brain, conjuring every possible way to pass without resorting to conflict. He attempted dialogue, seeking to outwit the illusion with logic and reason.

When words failed, he tried empathy, attempting to connect with the semblance of his father on a deeper level. Though he didn't try for long, feeling disgusted just talking to him for more than a minute.

He then went on to try everything he could think of, hoping to get lucky and dispel the illusion before him. Yet, each attempt fizzled out, leaving Peter frustrated and back at square one.

"You alright, son?" Ego asked, his gaze filled with concern and confusion, which only seemed to infuriate Peter.

"God, I hate you so much…" Peter muttered, though he still kept his emotions under control.

Suddenly, the air in the cave grew colder, or perhaps it was the chill of realization creeping up Peter's spine. There was one avenue he hadn't explored, one road he was loath to travel—forgiveness. It gnawed at him, the idea of forgiving Ego.

But how could he forgive the man who had brought such immense pain and suffering into his life? No, he couldn't forgive him, better yet, he refused to do so.

Although the Ego before him is no doubt an illusion, as he would have probably just kidnapped him by now if he wasn't, Peter still couldn't bring himself to forgive him. After all, forgiving the Ego before him would mean forgiving the real Ego, and that just wasn't possible.

'Besides, the trial will need me to actually mean what I say…' Peter knew how these things worked by now.

Confronting the illusion, Peter's voice echoed off the icy walls, "You want forgiveness, right? That's the only thing I haven't tried. But you know what? I will never forgive you. You killed my mom, obliterated my chance to know any of my half-siblings, and to top it all off, you're a f*cking psychopath piece of celestial trash." His words were a cascade of truth.

As the last words left Peter's mouth, a sense of lightness enveloped him, an unexpected peace that felt almost tangible. Speaking the truth, acknowledging his pain and anger without succumbing to it, seemed to have lifted a burden Peter hadn't fully realized he'd been carrying.

For a moment, time stood still, and the weight of his confession hung heavily in the air. Peter half-expected the illusion to retaliate, to mock him for his refusal or even outright attack him. But instead, the illusion of Ego faded, leaving Peter alone with his thoughts.

Realizing that he failed the trial, Peter grappled with the reality that the Kyber crystal—the heart of a Jedi's lightsaber—would remain beyond his grasp. A pang of sadness hit him, mourning not just for the weapon he wouldn't wield but for the symbolic loss of a journey he thought he would to complete.

But in the wake of his trial, a new understanding dawned on him. A lightsaber didn't define his strength or his worth. Life offered endless paths, and sadly, his did not hinge on wielding a laser sword…

"Nope, nuh uh." Peter wasn't having it, his gaze moving, glaring at the cave around him. "I'm not giving up that easy. I will have my laser sword!"

The cave's refusal to grant him a Kyber crystal had only fueled his resolve. If it wouldn't give him what he sought, then he'd take it by force!

Surrounded by walls glittering with clear Kyber crystals, Peter felt a surge of excitement. These crystals were within arm's reach, and he was determined to claim one.

With a steady hand, he reached out to a particularly luminous crystal, its glow captivating. The crystal seemed to pulsate with energy, as if aware of Peter's intentions.

Grasping it firmly, he pulled with all his force enhanced might. The cave seemed to resist, an almost magnetic force fighting to keep the crystal in place. But Peter, bolstered by his overwhelming power in the Force, yanked it free with a triumphant cry. "Hah! Yes!"

Holding the crystal in his hand, he felt a surge of accomplishment. It was heavier than he anticipated, pulsing with energy as if it had a life of its own.

Peter's eyes glittered with the reflection of the crystal's light, contemplating seizing another as he practices Niman, the two-sword style that Revan was teaching him.

However, the moment his hand brushed against another crystal, the cave trembled. A deep rumble echoed through the icy corridors, a clear sign of the cave's discontent with his theft. Peter paused, the vibration under his feet a stark warning he couldn't ignore.

Then, as suddenly as the quaking started, it ceased, and in the unsettling quiet that followed, Ego appeared across from him once again. This time, the look on his face was far from the smirking visage Peter had faced earlier. Ego's expression was dark, his eyes bore into Peter's with an intensity and animosity that sent a shiver down his spine.

"Uhh… hey, dad?" Peter backed away, hiding the stolen crystal behind his back. "I thought you left to pick up some cigarettes and milk…"

Without warning, Ego literally launched himself at Peter, flying through the air, his movement a blur of fury and power.

Peter didn't have time to react, the Kyber crystal still clutched tightly in his hand. He tried to dive to the side, but he wasn't fast enough, his father appearing beside him, burying a powerful strike into his stomach.

Eyes widening, Peter nearly folded in half as he spat out a mouthful of blood, barreling backwards and crashing into the cave wall behind him.

*cough* "Ugh… Can't we talk about this?" Peter asked as he picked himself up, groaning in pain.

But Ego was relentless, continuing his assault, each attack a testament to his otherworldly strength, forcing Peter to retreat.

The illusion of his father may not have had all of his Celestial powers, and certainly wasn't nearly as strong as the original, but it was certainly stronger than Peter. That much he could tell.

Constant running for his life, Peter could feel the cold seeping into his bones, the chill of the cave a stark contrast to the heat of their battle. He countered when he could, his punches landing with less force than he would have liked, his moves more about buying time than causing damage.

But Peter didn't stand a chance, his 'fathers' next blow sending him staggering back, his foot slipping on the icy ground. The momentary lapse gave Ego the advantage, closing the distance with a speed that defied the laws of physics.

Peter's mind raced. Fighting was futile; evasion was the only path forward. 'If I can get out of this cave, then he shouldn't be able to follow me… I hope.'

With a burst of desperate energy, Peter turned on his heel and sprinted off. The cave's luminescent crystals blurred past him as he ran.

Behind him, the sound of Ego's pursuit was a constant threat, each footstep a thunderous promise of the danger closing in on him.

The cave twisted and turned, a labyrinth of ice and crystals, each corridor more confusing than the last. Peter's breath came in ragged gasps, the cold air biting at his lungs, his heart pounding in his chest.

He ducked under a low-hanging icicle, nearly losing his footing as the ground beneath him sloped unexpectedly. The terrain was against him, the cave itself seeming to conspire with the illusion of his father to halt his escape.

But it didn't stop there, next, a sharp turn with the promise of escape led only to a cold, impassable dead end. Spinning on his heel, Peter chose another path, hope flaring briefly, only to be smothered by yet another dead end.

The cave was a merciless adversary, manipulating its icy corridors to trap him at every turn, each dead end chipping away at his resolve, until he was left with no option but to confront his relentless pursuer.

Peter's back pressed against the cold wall, a chilling reminder of the dire situation he found himself in. Ego closed the distance with slow, deliberate steps, his presence overwhelmingly intimidating.

"You really thought you could escape me, Peter?" Ego's voice echoed, each word as sharp as the icicles hanging from the cave's ceiling. "What a disappointment you turned out to be…"

Peter, trying to mask his rising panic with bravado, retorted, "Yeah, well, the feelings mutual… I mean, my real dead beat dad could wipe the floor with you with his eyes closed and both hands tied behind his back."

Cornered and with nowhere left to run, Peter steeled himself for a battle he knew he couldn't win. 'I guess this is it…'

But just as Ego prepared to strike, suddenly, the Kyber crystal in Peter's grasp pulsed with life. It glowed brightly, reacting to his determination to fight to the end and his fear of death.

"What the…?!" Peter exclaimed as he felt the crystal binding with him, using his force energy as fuel.

In a burst of energy, the crystal shined brightly, its light growing into an unstable sword of pure energy, its core as dark as the void of space, outlined by a brilliant white glow.

[Insert picture of the Darksaber here]

Ego halted, his shock mirroring the cave's own surprise. The stolen Kyber crystal, choosing Peter as its wielder, shifted the dynamics of their confrontation.

Seeing this as an opportunity, Peter lunged forward, the energy sword cutting through the illusion of his father with precision. Ego's form was bisected from the hip to hip, but soon vanished before it could hit the ground, leaving Peter alone in the suddenly silent cave.

The aftermath was a calm Peter hadn't anticipated. The cave seemed to relent, its icy walls no longer shifting to confine him.

"Is that it? Are we good now?" Peter called out, receiving no reply.

Seconds later, the energy sword in his hand faded from existence, leaving behind the crystal, now transformed. No longer clear, it pulsed with a dark core and a white halo, bringing a smile to Peter's face.

"Haha! Laser sword here I… come-" Peter drawled out the last word as he collapsed, falling unconscious, the crystal still tightly grasped in his hand.

A/N: 2160 words :)

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