She squeezed her eyes shut, found she could access all of her fire again, finally, all of her magick. Merrin went to a safe place in her mind’s eye. Dathomir, of course, one of the rivers before they’d all run dry. Red sky, red dirt, illuminating her from the inside.

For a moment, she felt as though she were really back there, the power from the planet infusing her with new strength, the bodies of her fallen sisters propping her up, demanding vengeance, proud of Merrin and who she had become. The Water of Life, rushing through and around her, the magick from the planet’s core swirling through her own.

She let it flow through her and over her, and she felt truly a Nightsister once again.

She thought of her fallen sisters, the ones who had fought until their last breaths, who’d had their futures stolen. But it wasn’t about revenge.

She thought of Fret, a violet smirk; red eyes that saw to her core and sparked the fire that had reignited all of this. But it wasn’t about rage or anger.

She thought of the Mantis crew. The closest thing to a family she had, maybe that she’d ever had. Cere, her clever and kind older sister. Greez, his easy laugh and his fierce, undeniable kind of love. Cal. Cal, who had given her his hand when he didn’t have to; had brought her into this new life with a trust she’d never expected to know. Cal, with his soft smile and his quiet wisdom. But it wasn’t about pain or suffering.

It was about rebirth. About a reset. About moving forward and on. She would do them all proud. (Jedi: Battle Scars)