Prologue

There is no death, there is only the Force.

And within the Force, the Light Side and the Dark Side coexist, but not in peace.

Ever together the two sides are, have been, and always will be. Their relationship both vague and defined; sharing in their similarities, but rigid in their differences. Their struggle has continued beyond the earliest thoughts of the Force's spirit children; the sentient beings that both feel and do not feel the presence of the energy that surrounds them, that gives them life and binds their galaxy together.

…but…

…there is…more…

…there is another…

…beyond their senses; beyond their understanding…

Beyond the Force, Light and Dark in its entirety, lay the counterpart of both.

To the sentient beings of the Force, an abyss. A realm of non-existence ignored by their limited understanding of reality.

To the Force, it was its beginning. It was from there that the Force had come into being and for all its knowledge, it was the one thing that the Force did not understand. It was not divided into Light and Dark and it did not allow the existence of midiclorians within it. It didn't need them.

The Counterpart simply was.

And that was sufficient.

The Counterpart never communicated with the Force. For as long as the Force had known, the Counterpart had remained silent to the many attempts of the Force to engage it. One might even think that it was mute.

But it was not, the Force knew and had seen this when it had heard the Counterpart speak creation into being. Unlike the galaxy that the Force nourished, the Counterpart's creation was incredibly vast!

It was far bigger than the Force (though that is not to say the Force can be compared to in 'size' the same way sentient beings define size); the Force contained one galaxy, within which lived thousands upon thousands of stars, planets and moons teeming with life comprised of many different races that thrived together. But within the Counterpart, numerous swirling galaxies spanned countless lightyears in a brilliant display of heavenly wonder, but ultimately they were all devoid of life.

Except for one place it created; in one galaxy. And this one galaxy (compared to the galaxy held together by the Force) differed in the strangest of ways.

Because the Counterpart did not allow the existence of midiclorians within this galaxy (or any of its other creations for that matter) the Force was confused by what it witnessed within the 'forceless' Counterpart. Life existed!

On a single planet.

Strange, that amide the immeasurable vastness and beauty of the heavens the Counterpart created, only on one planet was life made sustainable. On this singular little blue planet, life thrived. The only sentient beings that lived there were Humans. Why? How did they live without midiclorians? Without guidance and communication in the manner the Force extended to its little creations? And why only humans? The silent Counterpart never responded or acknowledged any of these inquiries from the Force.

It was always, always focused solely on those tiny lifeforms it tended to on the little blue planet.

Earth.

Special, was the obvious impression given by the Counterpart's devoted attention to it. A priceless gift to its spirit children, to be the sole bearers of life in the inestimable universe it had created for them. It increased their already immeasurable worth, the Counterpart believed, and it called to them at all times; personally, constantly, persistently, lovingly.

Why, the Force insisted? With no midiclorians how would they hear? Surely they would not be able to sense the counterpart's call.

But they did.

At least, they heard, but not all listened.

Of the little 'forceless' human beings, some worshiped the Counterpart that created them; others did not, denying its existence or defining it away as scientific phenomenon. The 'forceless' humans called it many things: God, Mother Nature, Fate, Natural Selection, Dark Matter, etc.

But it was not Dark; nor was it like the Light, at least, not as the Force defined itself.

The Counterpart, again, simply was.

And it loved its little forceless, powerless humans on its little blue planet in its vast, empty, forceless universe. Fiercely, Patiently and Unconditionally.

Jealously.

The Dark Side hated the Counterpart; for its nature to be slow to anger and quick to forgive the puny little beings it sustained, but the Dark Side also feared it because the Counterpart was powerful. The Light Side silently admired the Counterpart, but always at a distance, due to its inability to understand it. The Light Side first and foremost sought peace and serenity; the passionate love that the Counterpart lavished so freely on its little forceless humans baffled it. Such strong emotion could only lead to experiencing horrible pain and suffering, it was sure!

For the most part, both Sides of the Force ignored the silent and focused Counterpart and the Counterpart paid no mind.

As they have always done, the two Sides focused on each other and their spirit children, slowly circling their opposing Side and reaching for the lifeforms within the universe they bound into existence, bound by time; trying to maintain balance between them and themselves.

Until something happened as the Force argued over a shift in the balance.

"You have always been so short-sighted, taking pity on the weak that infest the galaxy! Only through strength will life survive and move forward." The Dark seethed. The shift had given it power, a slight weight against the Light, and the Dark pressed forward with it relentlessly.

The Light remained firm against the Dark, as it had since the beginning. "Strength alone does not decide what is and can be. All are precious and capable and must therefore be protected. Those with strength must aid those that do not; in this way ensuring that life will carry on and those destinies may be reached."

"Sentimentalities." The Dark sneered. "To shackle the progress of the lifeforms to something as whimsical as that. How does one expect them to advance and thrive when they are trapped in stagnation, the pursuit of other's benefits? All will fight to survive! Those with the ability to do so will. But none will benefit if all neglect their own abilities for the preservation of the inferior!"

The Light hummed in denial of the Dark's claims. All around them, the living beings of the galaxy were felt by the Force, each spark, strong and weak was seen clearly. "Perhaps the time for the Chosen One to appear should be soon." The Light mused. She longed to meet her Child, to bring him – or her – forth into the galaxy and guide the other little lights.

However, the Dark rebuffed the Light sharply. "It is not time! Again you allow your useless soft sentiments to hinder your judgment. I am stronger now, but not a danger as you love to imprint on your little worshipers. I do not threaten life, I drive it forwards and strengthen it and will continue to do so. The Chosen One is not needed."

"The Counterpart has already done so and brought many of its forceless beings to itself."

The Dark paused, but rippled in anger and hatred.

"We need not care what the Counterpart does or has done! We are better than it. Our many worlds populated by our many creations dwarf its insignificant little blue planet and puny human species!" It roared.

"Balance." The Light replied.

The Dark rippled again as though scoffing.

The Light insisted.

"Order."

"Chaos!"

"Are not the Counterpart's humans the epitome of both?"

The Dark was silent then, neither denied nor confirmed the Light's claim and brooded over the truth of it. For a silent entity, the Counterpart was efficient in its dealings with its powerless lifeforms, but the forceless humans themselves were a peculiar sort. Since their creation they'd rebelled against the Counterpart, but still cried pitifully to it when convenient. They were utterly powerless, but showed themselves capable both of extreme good and evil regardless of this. Their histories were burdened with constant bloodshed, yet tempered with an unexplainable capability of kindness and purity in their dealings with each other. They were as diverse as the many races within the Force's galaxy, but the same in their basic desires. Their unique trait of self-centeredness that the Dark saw in them was perhaps the only thing it found admirable about them. They balanced it in a way the Dark envied and used as fuel for its hatred of the silent Counterpart.

The Dark Side did not want the Chosen One to be dominated by the foolish whims of the Light Side, but the Force knew the devastation that would be inflicted on the galaxy – and the Force itself – should the Dark Side grow too powerful. The Force had felt it before.

And perhaps one of the greatest problems with existing outside of time is that events that have 'yet' to happen are already known; already felt.

…Perhaps something should be done, but…

With a quick glace towards the Counterpart, the Dark engaged the Light and for once, the Light stayed silent and listened to it until it was finished. The quiet persisted for a while until the Force saw how this might affect itself and the galaxy.

Then the Force did something it had never done before.

The Force found a little lifeform within its galaxy, a newly lit light flickering so faintly it knew it would not be long before it rejoined the Force, but it reached out to the lifeform and the Dark Side moved within the midiclorians, shaping them in a way one of its fervent followers had done not so long ago, but embellished the changes made to them to suit a different purpose. It sustained the form, even as the wavering little light flickered out. It was empty…waiting.

As one, the Force took one of the Counterpart's spirit children as it passed from its mortal coil and slipped it into the form they had molded to suit it.

For several beats, nothing happened…but fortunately the soul held within it the desire to live. The altered midiclorians reached out and the soul successfully took hold, becoming one with its new form; it began to grow…and it lived.

But then the Force trembled as the Counterpart suddenly raged! It grew furious at the theft of its spirit child and a torrent of outraged jealousy and anger greater than that of the Dark Side turned upon them both! The Force tried to push back and stand against the fury that descended upon it, but the Counterpart continued relentlessly until it finally pushed past and touched the spirit child that was taken from it. The Counterpart then renewed within the newly reformed life the connection that the soul had known in its existence within the Counterpart's care; the connection between the Counterpart and its child was not lost. It was revived.

The Counterpart then withdrew into itself, but turned and addressed the Force for the first time.

And what was said between the Counterpart and the Force…

…is unknown…