Chapter 8: Chapter 8: Whispers of the Past
The dawn broke over Tatooine, its twin suns rising like molten eyes glaring down upon the endless dunes. The oppressive heat returned with brutal intensity, but it wasn't the scorching wind or the blinding light that disturbed Harry.
It was the memory.
The fragmented vision haunted him—the mechanical breathing, the towering figure clad in black armor, and that voice: "The Force is strong with this one."
But why did it feel like he wasn't just hearing it?
Why did it feel like… it was spoken to him?
[SYSTEM ALERT: Memory Fragment Incomplete]
• Progress: 1/5
• Next Clue Location: Dune Sea – Ancient Force Nexus
• Objective: Recover the remaining fragments to unlock your true origins.
Harry sat near the dying embers of the campfire, his fingers absently tracing the hilt of Zara's stolen vibrosword. Its crimson glow no longer hummed, but the memory of its lethal heat lingered in his palm.
Across from him, Zara stirred, wincing as she adjusted her wounded arm. Her eyes—amber like desert flames—met his.
"You didn't sleep," she muttered, her voice rough from injury and exhaustion.
Harry shrugged. "Didn't need to."
She scoffed. "That's not natural."
Neither am I.
Instead of answering, Harry stood, brushing the sand from his worn clothes. The desert stretched before them, but something deeper called to him—a pull in the Force, like an invisible thread tugging at his very soul.
"We're leaving."
Zara raised an eyebrow. "Where?"
Harry's gaze hardened. "To find answers."
Tatooine – The Dune Sea
The journey across the Dune Sea was brutal. The scorching sun beat down mercilessly, and the sand seemed to swallow every step they took. But Harry's focus never wavered.
He could feel it—an ancient pulse buried beneath the sands. A place where the Force bled into reality, raw and unfiltered.
They arrived at the edge of a deep canyon carved into the dunes, where jagged rocks formed unnatural patterns. At its center stood a structure—ruins, half-buried and eroded by time. Symbols etched into stone walls glimmered faintly, pulsing with an energy Harry had never felt before, even as a wizard.
A Force Nexus.
[QUEST UPDATE: Echoes of Power]
• Objective: Enter the Nexus and recover the second memory fragment.
• Bonus Objective: Survive the guardians of the Nexus.
Harry approached cautiously, Zara trailing behind with her blaster loosely in hand.
"This place feels… wrong," she muttered.
Harry didn't respond. It didn't feel wrong to him. It felt like… home.
As they crossed the threshold, a sudden gust of cold air swept over them. The oppressive heat vanished, replaced by an unnatural chill.
The ground trembled.
And from the shadows emerged figures—not alive, but not entirely dead either. Dark silhouettes, their bodies wrapped in ancient armor, hollow eyes glowing faint blue beneath cracked helmets.
Force Wraiths.
[BATTLE INITIATED: GUARDIANS OF THE NEXUS]
• Enemy Count: 4 Force Wraiths
• Boss Encounter: Wraith Commander (Elite)
• Objective: Defeat the guardians to access the Nexus core.
Harry ignited the double-bladed vibrosword, its crimson glow cutting through the darkness. The wraiths responded immediately, rushing with inhuman speed.
The first wraith lunged, its spectral blade arcing toward Harry's chest. He sidestepped, countering with a swift slash that passed through the creature's body—no effect.
Not physical.
Instinct kicked in.
Harry clenched his fist, summoning the dark energy within him.
[Skill Activated: Force Rupture (Level 2)]
The wraith convulsed mid-air, its form imploding in a burst of shadow and ash.
Zara fired her blaster at another, but the shots passed harmlessly through. She cursed, switching tactics, and charged with a vibroknife, slashing at its ethereal form. The blade connected—barely—leaving a faint gash of flickering light.
Harry spun, channeling both rage and focus. The dark side surged, not out of hatred, but survival. His attacks became a blur of red and shadow, cutting down the remaining wraiths until only one remained—the Wraith Commander.
It was larger, its form more solid, and it spoke in a language Harry didn't understand, yet somehow felt—words etched into the fabric of the Force itself.
"You are not of this world. You carry the echoes of another."
Harry didn't hesitate. He unleashed everything.
His hands shot forward, dark tendrils of raw Force energy erupting like spears.
[Skill Activated: Force Rupture – Overload]
The Wraith Commander shattered into shards of black crystal, disintegrating with an otherworldly scream.
[BATTLE COMPLETE]
• EXP Gained: 5,000
• Level Up! (Lv. 6)
• Skill Progression: Force Rupture (Level 2 → Level 3)
• Loot Acquired: Ancient Holocron (Encrypted)
At the heart of the Nexus, surrounded by crumbling relics, Harry found it—a floating crystal, faintly glowing with blue light.
As he reached for it, the System activated.
[MEMORY FRAGMENT RECOVERED: 2/5]
Visions flooded his mind.
A boy—him—screaming inside a sterile chamber.
Figures in white armor watching as a masked man in black loomed over him.
"The boy is not a Jedi… but his potential exceeds even Skywalker's."
Another voice—dark, ancient. "Then we will mold him into something greater."
Harry collapsed, gasping.
Zara rushed to his side. "What the hell was that?"
Harry's hands trembled.
"I'm not… just from Earth," he whispered. "I've been here before."
His heart raced, not with fear, but with a terrifying realization.
He wasn't reincarnated into this world.
He was returned to it.
Meanwhile, Aboard the Imperial Star Destroyer
Inquisitor Valen knelt before a towering hologram of Darth Vader.
"The anomaly grows stronger."
Vader's mechanical breathing filled the silence.
"Good."
His crimson lightsaber ignited, casting long shadows.
"It's time I met him myself."
To be continued…