The Boy in the Red Room
He watches the boy from the doorway, through a space big enough for only one eye to see. It is a little disappointing that the child hasn't sensed him yet; at thirteen, he should be so much farther along than he is. And yet, sometimes his lack of experience is an advantage. It makes him crave the knowledge more, makes him work harder for it.
The boy's history is simple: he is a child born into slavery, a child with an unremarkable mother, a child of the suns and the sand and the harsh, desert air.
He has a name, one that conjures up images of a freedom that is still new to him, one that will be remembered for at least a few more years on the Mid-Rim planet he helped save.
It would be difficult to explain to someone – were he ever interested in doing so – why the boy is so important, why he is the solution to a multitude of problems. On the surface he is ordinary, no different from any other child in the galaxy. But underneath, in the blood that runs through his veins, there is a unique power and destiny that calls to the one person who knows to look for it.
Darth Sidious is that person. And he is the only being in the galaxy who understands that Anakin Skywalker is the Chosen One, the one destined to bring balance to the Force and, ostensibly, save the Jedi from the evils of the dark side.
Funny thing about destiny. If a person isn't given a chance to fulfill theirs, it leaves them ripe for a new one. And Sidious has the perfect destiny lined up for his young apprentice.
He has been careful with this boy. He couldn't try to break him right away, as he did with Maul. Anakin lived for nearly ten years with a mother who loved him and would do anything in her power to make him happy. That was not a memory that could be erased by beatings alone.
Upon leaving Tatooine for the second time, Anakin didn't know Sidious, but he did know Palpatine. He knew that the newly-elected Supreme Chancellor was deeply troubled to learn that the Jedi Council had rejected him and that Obi-Wan Kenobi had been too doubt-ridden to go against their wishes. He knew that his mother would be taken good care of while he went away with the Chancellor for schooling. Most of all, he knew that Chancellor was a kind man who was good at listening to people's problems.
And so that is what Sidious did for the first two years that Anakin lived with him. In addition to giving him the best education available and being the father he never had, Sidious listened as Anakin revealed his greatest dreams and his biggest fears. He learned who Anakin loved and who he hated. He took that information, dissected it, stored some of it for later use, and came up with a way to forever corrupt the child of prophecy.
Sidious allows himself a small smile as he stares at Anakin through the door. The Jedi Order is dead, he thinks. They just don't know it yet.
.
.
There is a room.
In this room, the walls are warm and inviting, deep red like the setting sun. There are plush chairs, an elaborate bath, and grand works of art. It isn't what Anakin expected a prison to look like, but then again, at first it wasn't a prison at all.
The Chancellor is hardly every cruel, but he catches a glimpse of it every now and then, behind his eyes. It's become more frequent ever since Palpatine revealed who he truly was.
Sometimes Anakin can look at the Chancellor and forget that it was his previous apprentice who murdered Qui-Gon Jinn. Sometimes he can forget that the Sith are supposed to be evil and that one day he will be evil, too. Sometimes he can pretend that it isn't his destiny to pay a special visit to the Jedi Temple in the middle of the night.
He is thirteen. He may not have many years behind him, but he is old enough to know that it isn't supposed to be like this.
He watches the room's HoloNet feed, absently rubbing the lightsaber burns on his left arm even though he knows he shouldn't touch them. Rather than reclining in one of the overstuffed chairs, he sits on the floor in front of the holoproj, getting as close as possible to the blue-edged image. He sees a close-up shot of a woman; she is wearing a long, conservative gown in shades of purple. The accompanying headdress is twice the size of her head and weighed down by jewels. Anakin leans forward to drink in her smile.
"In other news, Queen Amidala of Naboo was re-elected by an overwhelming majority. Just shy of her eighteenth birthday, the queen is well-known for freeing her people from a Trade Federation invasion of Naboo three and a half years ago. Sources confirm that after being congratulated by her main rival, the queen spoke privately with her friend and former advisor, Chancellor Palpatine himself."
As the news feed goes on to a different story, Anakin shuts of the holoproj.
One day he will escape the red room. He will escape every room in this prison, and in his dreams no one will call him a monster anymore.
.
Fin