**These first few chapters you're probably going to be thinking "Been there, read that." Please bear with me, I'm sure I've got twists and turns enough to keep you interested if you'll just hang with me until I can get there. **
Prologue
"Help me, Anakin! Don't let him kill me," Chancellor Palpatine pleaded, holding his hands before his face. The scarred man shied away from the brilliant purple blade humming with deadly intent above his chest. Jedi Master Mace Windu growled angrily and threatened to lunge forward, forcing the sniveling politician to retreat further against the wall.
"Don't listen to him, Anakin. It must be this way," Master Windu cried, leveling his lightsaber at the Chancellor's throat close enough that the man could feel the heat radiating from the blade of plasma.
"Please, Master. Don't kill him; it's not the Jedi way. He should be given a trial, not killed in cold blood," Anakin Skywalker cried, taking a single step toward the furious pair. Windu scowled over his shoulder, half turning his head to face Anakin. "Please, I need him to live," Anakin added after a moment's pause. Mace shook his head once before he turned back to the Chancellor.
"Yes, yes, Anakin. I can save her; together we can save her. But if you let him kill me now she will die. Without a doubt she will die. Kill him, Anakin, kill him now."
"You must resist him, Skywalker. If you turn to the Dark Side, the Jedi will fall. His reign must end here or the Sith will simply continue to resurface, eventually destroying the balance we have so carefully maintained."
Anakin groaned and clenched his hands into fists, glancing from Jedi Master to Sith Lord with troubled eyes. Padmé's screams taunted him, urging him to strike down Master Windu. It was possible that the vision would not come true, he knew that, but he couldn't be sure. There was no way to be sure. The young man's mind and heart pulled him in different directions, pushed him to different goals. He could almost scream in frustration. "At least do not kill him now, not like this," the Jedi knight begged, desperate for a way out that did not involve making this critical choice now.
"He's too dangerous to be left alive. Look at what he did to your fellow Jedi, Anakin. He murdered them, each and every one. You are better than this, Skywalker. Palpatine doesn't care about you, or anyone else. Take a good look at those dead Jedi. If you try to stop this from happening, you will condemn thousands to the same fate," Master Windu explained, gesturing to the corridor where the bodies of several Jedi lay strewn across the carpeted floor. Anakin's eyes shifted warily to the corpses as discomfiture and uncertainty washed across his face. Master Windu could see that his argument was swaying the young man, but so could the cowering politician. Chancellor Palpatine snarled and lashed out at the Jedi Master with brilliant blue bolts of crackling lightning. Master Windu moved to block the attack with his saber, but a significant portion made it through his defenses. Shuddering and flailing from the electrifying assault, the Jedi stumbled backwards.
"No!" Anakin shouted, dashing forward and lunging for the Master. His movements were much too late. Mace Windu tumbled through the broken window and into Coruscant's cool night sky. The young Jedi knight watched with mournful eyes as the Master disappeared into the dull glow of the city lights below.
"Come, now is the time for you to take up your true potential. You have seen the shortcomings of the Jedi. Join me now as a Dark Lord of the Sith; rise as Darth Vader and stand by my side as I remake the galaxy," Palpatine cackled as he slowly pushed himself to his feet. Anakin's shoulders suddenly ceased their quaking as he raised frighteningly angry eyes to view the Sith Lord.
"You are a monster. If I join you, I too will become a monster. You deserve nothing more than death, and death I shall give you," the young man growled as he rose and ignited his lightsaber with a snap-hiss. Chancellor Palpatine blinked once before a malicious grin spread across his face. He did not move to retrieve the lightsaber that Master Windu had deftly removed from his possession earlier. In fact, he did not appear to move at all, barely even seemed to be breathing.
"You are naïve, young Skywalker. The Jedi might label you as the Chosen One, but you are no match for me. You are weak, held back by your foolish love for those around you. It will destroy you, and when it does you will look back on this moment and wish that you had chosen to join me," the Sith Lord said calmly. Rage flared within the Jedi knight, and Palpatine's grin spread wider yet. "Such potential. It's a shame that it's going to be so wholly wasted. Goodnight, young Skywalker. Mark my words: we will meet again." Anakin started to spin around, but the chair Palpatine propelled through the air struck him directly. The young man crumpled into a heap, his lightsaber extinguishing itself as it fell from his grasp. Palpatine stepped over his body, laughing as he went. The Sith Lord wondered if perhaps he might be better off finishing the boy now, but he decided that now was not the time and place. Destroying him later before an audience would be all the better. That way the Jedi could watch their precious Chosen One fall. Yes, he would be left alive for now. It would mean delaying his plans and cancelling the execution of Order 66, but that was a sacrifice that the Sith Lord was willing to make. He would never succeed in establishing his Empire without a suitable apprentice and heir to support him. Huffing angrily, but willing to accept this alternative, Palpatine strode out of his office to begin his short exile. "Until then, Skywalker."
"Master Yoda, I just heard the news. How is he?" Master Obi-Wan Kenobi asked as he jumped out of the cockpit of his starfighter and began to unload R4 from the astromech's droid socket. The mission on Utapau had been successful, to say the least, but Kenobi had been rushed back to the Temple along with the mother missing Jedi Masters. He had been informed of the newest developments during his approach of Coruscant.
"Fine is young Skywalker's health. Suffering is his mind. Know, you do, of his union to Senator Amidala, hmmm?" the small green-skinned Jedi Master asked as he hobbled toward the small starfighter and its robed pilot.
"I had guessed as much, Master. I would never have suspected that it would play such a pivotal role in these events, however." Obi-Wan joined Master Yoda with R4 in tow, pulling his robes tight around his body, feeling very suddenly chilled. "Has the council been called back to make a ruling on Anakin's fate with the Order?"
"Yes and no. Addressed, the issue must be. Broken the code, young Skywalker has, but saved our order as well. Difficult to make a decision on the matter. Very difficult," Master Yoda replied as he retrieved his hovering chair and set a steady pace through the corridors of the Temple, heading for the Council Chambers. Obi-Wan noticed several other Masters returning from their missions away from Coruscant and sighed quietly.
"Master, you know the lengths of my devotion to the Order, but you also know my devotion to Anakin. I will be the first to admit that he has strayed from the proper course for a Jedi. I understand my duty to the Order; however, I cannot make an unbiased ruling on Anakin. I wish to respectfully remove myself from the judging council," the younger man explained in a hushed voice. Master Yoda came to a halt and turned his chair to face the other Master.
"Patience, Master Kenobi. An ultimatum prevent yourself from reaching." Obi-Wan nodded once as the two continued on, reaching the Council chambers a few minutes later. The other masters had assembled themselves by the time that Obi-Wan and Yoda took their seats. Anakin was standing nervously in the corridor before the chambers as they passed, shifting slowly from foot to foot. Obi-Wan dropped a comforting hand on the young man's shoulders before he stepped into the chambers and the door slid shut behind him. It was several more minutes before the masters called Skywalker before them, and the young knight spent it quickly pacing the corridor. Despite his impatience, when he found himself doubled over in a bow before the scrutinizing gazes of the Council, Anakin wished that he were still out in the hall.
"A grave loss we have suffered, very grave. Felt by all, will be Master Windu's loss. Know the story of his death, we do not," Master Yoda said as way of giving Anakin permission to rise from his bow. The young man launched into a detailed description of the events, having come to the decision that keeping details from the Council would only hasten his being removed from the Order. Anakin could see from the expressions on the masters faces that they were finding his tale very difficult to believe, but he pressed forward anyways.
"I have failed the Order, Masters, and no one feels my failure more than myself. It will not lessen the pain of losing Master Windu nor will it cancel out my actions, but I will accept whatever punishment this Council deems necessary," he said in conclusion, dipping his head low between his shoulders. Master Yoda turned to survey the other masters of the Council, reading into each of their expressions in turn. Very suddenly he stopped and cocked his wrinkled head to one side as if listening to something. The other masters watched him with anticipation.
"Suspect that a cheerful moment has come for you, I do, young Skywalker. Come to fruition, Padmé's pregnancy has," Master Yoda explained finally. Anakin's eyes went wide, but he did not move for the door. "Go to your wife, you should. Deliberate the Council will." Anakin bowed deeply once more before he strode for the door quickly. Once outside of the chambers he advanced to a near run, rushing for a speeder to carry him to his wife. The masters watched him go silently, each observing their own thoughts on the young man's decisions. Master Yoda cleared his throat only when he felt Anakin's presence receding into the distance. "Very difficult a decision to make, this is. Your thoughts?"
"I do not believe he should be removed from the Order," Master Secura answered in a gentle voice. Several of the masters, notably Ki-Adi-Mundi gasped audibly but waited for her explanation. "Anakin has faced the dangers of passion and maintained his connection with the Light Side. Clearly his confrontation with the Sith has shown us that he is capable of withstanding the lure of his emotions."
"He has survived this time with his nobility intact, but there will always be a next time. Even if he manages to make it through that confrontation, it will happen again. We cannot be sure that the threat to our Order is eliminated unless we remove it ourselves," Master Ki-Adi-Mundi added almost before Master Secura had finished speaking. "Furthermore, this blatant breach of the Code cannot be ignored lest we set a precedent for future rulings."
"I fail to see how removing Skywalker from the Order eliminates the threat," Master Shaak Ti countered. "If you kick him out we are severing his only life-line. When next he faces the Sith – and do not be fooled into thinking that they will not try again – he will very likely fall. I say we allow him to remain with the Order under close scrutiny. It is clear he is completely capable of continuing his normal duties, and, as long as we keep an eye on him, any suspicious behavior will be noticed immediately."
"Agree with Master Shaak Ti, I do. Master Kenobi, join me in delivering the news, you will, hmmm?" Master Yoda asked, preparing to dismiss the Council. Obi-Wan nodded in answer and the Council stood as one, bowing to each other before making their way out of the chambers.
"It is a boy," the medical droid crooned in a gentle voice. Anakin took the swaddled babe from the droid's cradling arms and held it before the gasping form of his wife. Padmé leaned forward on the med table just enough to kiss the boy's forehead before she looked up at her husband's worried face.
"Lucas – Luke – I like that name. Do you?" Padmé asked her husband. Anakin thought for a moment, rolling the name around on his tongue.
"Luke…yes, I think it fits. Say hello to your mother, Luke Skywalker," the young man answered finally, tilting the babe forward. Brilliant blue eyes scanned Padmé's face as the baby crooned gently. Both parents grinned broadly for a moment before Padmé cringed and groaned in pain. The young woman seemed to curl up on herself, sweat standing out in beads on her brow. Anakin started, turning to the medical droid with panic written plainly across his face. "What's going on?" he demanded.
"There's a second child. It's positioning is not right, though. It seems the baby has turned itself around in the womb, and the umbilical cord is wrapped around its neck too tightly to remove without killing it." On the table, Padmé gasped, gazing up at her husband with pleading eyes. Anakin took hold of his wife's hand and squeezed it tightly, shifting Luke to a single handed grip. He had a sneaking suspicion that he knew where his vision had come from. Terror threatened to strangle his heartstrings as he realized that if he had turned to the Dark Side, he most likely wouldn't have been here. By herself, with a husband lost to evil, Padmé would surely have sacrificed herself to save the baby. Anakin would have caused his wife's death.
"Is there no way to save the baby?" he asked the droid quietly, the realization he had made still fresh in his mind. Tears began to leak down Padmé's face.
"Your wife is too weak for such an operation. It would require surgery, but already Padme's body and systems are stressed from the first birth. The additional strain of extra blood loss would almost certainly send her into shock." The young woman closed her eyes and turned her head away, already knowing her husband's answer before he even opened his mouth to speak it. "I'm sorry, angel. I wish there was another way," Anakin whispered before he told the droid to abort the labor. The droid fell to work, removing the tiny corpse of a baby girl some minutes later. Anakin stroked the baby's forehead gently, identifying his wife's features in her face. Tears threatened to flow over his lashes, and he very suddenly turned away, gently covering the child with a swaddling blanket so that his wife would not have to see her. It was only a few minutes more before Padmé was free of the labor table and was resting quietly with her newborn on a stretcher. Anakin watched his wife and child for a long time, wondering vaguely how he could have been so lucky. Memories of his vision drifted through his mind, but he pressed them away, determined not to let them spoil this moment. There was a knock on the silvered glass behind him, and the young man turned to see Masters Kenobi and Yoda beckoning him into the next room. Anakin took one long look at his wife before he went to join them.
"Very beautiful, the birth of a child is. Wish you congratulations, I do," Master Yoda said as Anakin entered the antechamber and the door slid shut behind him. Anakin dipped his head in thanks, but kept his eyes on the ground. The young man fully expected the diminutive master to inform him that he had been removed from the Order. "More good news have we for you. Decided to remove you, we have not. Stay with the Order you shall." Anakin's head snapped up in surprise, and he turned to Obi-Wan as if seeking confirmation. His Master's face remained impassive and his eyes stern.
"It is true, but you must never forget what you did. You very nearly fell to the Dark Side, taking hundreds of lives with you. This is not the Council condoning your actions; this is the Council protecting its own. Do not let your defenses falter in light of this decision, Anakin. Do not," Obi-Wan said in a quiet but deathly serious tone. The young man's head dipped low between his shoulders again.
"I understand, Master," Anakin replied. He wished desperately to excuse himself and return to his wife and child, but he could not bring himself to be so rude. Luckily for the young man, Obi-Wan's face brightened very suddenly into a wide grin.
"Enough of this solemnity. Go, be with your family. If you do not mind terribly much, perhaps I could visit you all later. I certainly would enjoy meeting the new arrival," Obi-Wan said with a laugh. Anakin's head came up again and he smiled broadly. Very quickly and with enthusiasm the young man nodded his thanks and turned on his heel, a newfound bounce in his step as he went. Padmé and their son were both hovering on the edge of sleep, the baby quietly feeding on her breast. Anakin stroked his son's hair as he kissed his wife's forehead once gently, pulling her back to consciousness.
"Ani? That was Obi-Wan wasn't it? What did they decide?" Padmé asked quietly, shifting just barely beneath the near sleeping baby. Anakin half wished that his wife hadn't asked, but he knew that there was no reason to delay the discussion.
"They have decided not to remove me from the Order. I can only assume that I'll watched closely, but I would gladly put up with it if that's what it takes to remain a Jedi. And no; they are not going to make us separate," Anakin added, noticing the fearful look on the young woman's face.
"You know, I felt something earlier, Ani, while you were gone to the Temple. I still don't know what it was; it felt like part of my soul had been torn away from the rest for a few minutes. It was the worst pain I've ever experienced. I could have sworn I was dying, but then it suddenly went away and I felt freer – stronger – than ever before." Anakin flinched, already knowing what it was that his wife had felt. It wasn't that he had been planning to hide the truth from Padmé, but he certainly had hoped that it wouldn't come up now. "Something happened to you, didn't it, sweetie?" Padmé brushed her husband's cheek with the heel of her right palm, neither her voice nor her eyes accusing.
"You remember that vision I told you about? The dream where you died in childbirth?" Padmé nodded in response. "It frightened me a great deal. I couldn't bear the thought of losing you; I was determined to prevent my vision from coming true. Palpatine slowly convinced me that – by turning to the Dark Side – I would be able to prevent you from dying. I very nearly turned; I wanted to kill those that had denied me help. Do you hear me? I wanted to slaughter Jedi, could almost feel my blade slicing through them." Anakin's face was twisted with anguish, his eyes blurring with tears. Padmé stuttered with revulsion before she realized that this was still her Anakin, not some murderous stranger in her husband's skin.
"Shush, Ani. You pulled through, and you have no way of understanding how proud I am of you. But right now…this isn't the time for such talk. Put it from your mind for now, and enjoy this moment with me. Look at our son, Anakin, and try to forget what could have been," Padmé said gently, scrubbing away the tears that had started down the young man's cheek. Anakin dutifully turned his eyes down to his newborn and a gently smile spread slowly across his face.
"He's perfect." Anakin leaned forward to press his forehead against his wife's, wrapping his arm around both her and their son.
"No, Anakin. We're perfect; our family is perfect."
Masters Yoda and Kenobi were still standing quietly outside of the med room. Yoda turned away slowly, muttering a hushed 'hmm' under his breath. Obi-Wan's mouth was hanging open slightly as he watched the newly formed family closely. As the human turned to follow the diminutive Jedi master, he forced air back into his lungs, not realizing how long he had stood without breathing.
"Master, did you see…" Obi-Wan started, already wondering inwardly whether he had been imagining things.
"Yes, very interesting this development is. Perhaps incorrect our earlier assumptions were," Master Yoda answered with a nod. Obi-Wan glanced over his shoulder again, wincing at the bright glow emanating from the room.
"How can Anakin not see it?"
"Blinded by his emotions the young one is at this moment. Only in time will he see. Know of this, the boy must not; seen the results of pride we already have," Master Yoda went on quietly, his words barely audible over the distance between him and the younger master. Obi-Wan nodded slowly despite the fact that he knew Master Yoda had no way of seeing him do so. The young man's eyes were still focused on the med room, narrowed to slits against the brilliant silver glow of the baby's Force presence. It didn't just surround the boy; it filled him, infused him with the warm light from the deepest depths of his being. Obi-Wan shook his head sadly and turned away.
"Force help them," he muttered under his breath as he followed after Master Yoda, leaving the family behind them to their time of happiness.