Alternate Path

Chapter 1:

Padmé rested her head against her hand. She knew she had to calm down. She could not reason with Anakin properly, if she let her frustration get in the way. Just then, she saw a dark shadow emerge out of the building in front of her. Anakin! She silently gasped, as she saw him remove his hood.

Once she saw him rushing towards her, Padmé quickly turned her seat around and headed out of the ship. Racing down the ramp, she saw Anakin approaching the platform. Then, the two of them literally ran into each other's arms.

"I saw your ship," Anakin sighed, as they slowly broke apart. "What are you doing out here?"

"I was so worried about you!" Padmé blurted, trying to think of the right words to say. "Obi-Wan told me terrible things."

"What things?" Anakin questioned, the tone in his voice instantly changing.

"He said that you turned to the dark side. That you…killed younglings!" she exclaimed, not believing her own words.

"Obi-Wan is trying to turn you against me," Anakin stated, flatly.

"He cares about us," Padmé sighed.

"Us?"

"He knows," Padmé explained, nodding her head. "He wants to help you."

Anakin smirked, when he heard that. Padmé clearly didn't know Obi-Wan as well as he did.

"Anakin, all I want is your love."

"But, love won't save you, Padmé! Only my new powers can do that."

"At what cost? You're a good person! Don't do this!"

"I won't lose you the way I lost my mother," Anakin stated. "I have become more powerful than any jedi has ever dreamed of. And I'm doing it all for you. To protect you."

"Come away with me," she started, wrapping her hands around his head. "Help me raise our child. Leave everything else behind, while we still can!" she cried, stroking his face.

"Don't you see? We don't have to run away anymore," Anakin beamed. "I have brought peace to the Republic. I am more powerful than the chancellor. I…I can overthrow him!" he exclaimed, as Padmé started backing away. "And together, you and I can rule the galaxy. Make things the way we want them to be!"

"I don't believe what I'm hearing," Padmé stammered, shaking her head. "Obi-Wan was right. You've changed!"

"I don't want to hear any more about Obi-Wan," Anakin snapped, shaking his hand. "The Jedi turned against me. Don't you turn against me!" he hissed, in a threating tone.

Padmé was utterly flabbergasted. How could he possibly believe she would ever turn against him? "Anakin, I would never..." she exclaimed, as she saw the pain swelling in his eyes. By that look alone, she knew he was hurting. He had been fooled just as much as they all had. More than anything, she wanted to hold him. Cradle him. Make all his pain disappear. But, the mere notion of ruling the galaxy, made her cringe. "I don't know you anymore! Anakin…you're breaking my heart. You're going down a path I can't follow."

Those words hit Anakin to the core. He hated seeing her like this. How he wished he could just caress her. Reassure her everything was all right. But, as Anakin met her eyes. He knew he couldn't. "Because of Obi-Wan?" he wondered.

"Because of what you've done! What you plan to do," Padmé huffed. "Stop. Stop now! Come back! I LOVE YOU!" she cried.

For a moment, it seemed as though she got through to him. She saw the tension lowering in his expression, and tears starting to form.

"LIAR!" Anakin suddenly cried out, shaking Padmé to the core.

I would never lie to him! How could he even think that? Then, it hit her… Obi-Wan! He must have followed me. Already knowing what she'd see, Padmé turned to see Obi-Wan standing in the doorway of her ship. That bastard! He tricked me! No wonder Anakin thinks I'm a liar. "NO!" Padmé shrieked, taking a few steps back as Anakin approached her.

"You're with him! You brought him here to kill me!" Anakin screamed, pointing angrily at her.

"Never!" Padmé almost fainted, when she saw how yellow his eyes were. Her fears had become reality. Palpatine! That damn old man. This was all his fault! He had truly mind poisoned Anakin's mind, and she was the reason why all this happened. How could she have been so blind?! All along, she knew how evil he was. Yet, she still encouraged Anakin to stay close to him. She would never forgive herself for that!

Just as she started to speak, she heard Obi-Wan gasping for breath. Padmé turned to see him clutching his neck. "Anakin," she murmured, as she saw his outstretched hand. He was choking him.

"You turned her against me!" Anakin bellowed, as Obi-Wan struggled to reply.

"No, Anakin! I would never do anything to harm you!" Padmé exclaimed. "Obi-Wan tricked me."

Hearing those words made Anakin even more outraged. "You will not take her from me!" he shouted, tightening his grip.

Obi-Wan's face started turning blue. Padmé knew she had to stop him from killing him.

"Anakin, let him go. I beg you!" she pleaded, rushing towards him. "He's not worth it!" Seeing that his grip wasn't loosening, Padmé knew she had to act fast. "Anakin, he may have betrayed our trust, but he doesn't deserve to die. Let him go. Ani, please!" she shouted, clutching his arm. "You're better than this!"

In an instant, Anakin released Obi-Wan from his grip. Letting him fall harshly to the ground.

Obi-Wan could barely feel his throat. He couldn't even feel air in his lungs. Now, he knew exactly what Anakin was capable of in this state. He truly was a Sith lord. As soon as he tried to breathe, he began coughing violently.

"Are you all right?" Padmé asked, as she slowly walked towards him.

"Barely," Obi-Wan blurted, as he started to pick himself up.

As much as she hated seeing Anakin hurt him, Padmé knew he deserved it. He had used her to find Anakin. She was nothing more than a means to kill him. What kind of monster was he? "You tricked me!" she screeched, angrily glaring at him. "I was just pawn to help you find him!"

"I had no choice, Padmé," Obi-Wan stated, glaring back at her. "Anakin is no longer on our side. He has been corrupted by the dark lord."

"Don't lecture me, Obi-Wan," Anakin blurted, taking off his robe. "I see through the lies of the Jedi. I have brought peace, justice and security to my new empire," he declared, happily turning towards Padmé.

"Your new empire?" Obi-Wan questioned, utterly shocked by his words.

"Don't make me kill you," Anakin threatened, pulling Padmé close.

"Anakin, my allegiance is to the Republic. To democracy!"

"If you're not with me… then you're my enemy!" Anakin huffed, letting go of Padmé.

"Only a Sith deals in absolutes," Obi-Wan winced, as he took off his robe. "I will do what I must."

"You will try," Anakin stated, igniting his sabre as he immediately back-flipped towards Obi-Wan.

As soon as she saw both their lightsabre's clash, Padmé could feel her legs go numb. She knew this would be a battle to the death, and she didn't know if she had the strength to witness it. Before she knew it, everything became blurry. Padmé fell instantly to the ground, and all went black.

When she woke up, the two men were no longer in sight. Padmé gasped in horror, praying Anakin had been the victor of the battle. She couldn't even fathom the thought of losing him. Once she stood up, she walked towards the dark tower, and entered. Inside, she saw all the slain bodies of the neimoidians and countless battle droids. Palpatine had truly been a double crosser. A living definition of a sociopath.

Looking towards the open shaft, she could have sworn she saw two lighted blades. Panting heavily, she rushed out the other doorway, and gazed across the fiery abyss below her. She saw them. Fighting, even as they made their way up a falling pillar. Obi-Wan was merciless. He looked as though he were about to shove Anakin into the fiery lake below. Padmé wouldn't allow that to happen. Mustering up all her strength, she raced down the ramp of the balcony, hoping she'd get there in time.

Once she made to the rocky ledge, Padmé could barely believe her eyes. The two of them were still fighting, as they stood on a small platform. Which could easily sink into the lake of fire. This was beyond madness!

Seconds later, Obi-Wan back-flipped onto the lower part of the ledge. "It's over, Anakin. I have the high ground!" he proclaimed.

"You underestimate my power!" Anakin roared.

"Don't try it!" Obi-Wan warned, figuring what he had in mind.

Padmé's eyes widened, when she saw Obi-Wan secretly reach for his lightsaber. She knew exactly what he was going to do. He planned on striking Anakin, while he was in mid-air. He would be killed, before he even touched the ground. She would not let that happen! Grabbing her small blaster, Padmé fired three shots. Hitting Obi-Wan from behind.

"Aah!" Obi-Wan cried, as he fell to the ground.

"Padmé!" Anakin shrieked, utterly amazed by her attack.

"I'm sorry, Obi-Wan," she stated, as she slowly approached them.

"Why, Padmé? Why?!" Obi-Wan screeched, as he struggled to face her.

"I won't let you kill him!" Padmé fired.

"He's a murderer, Padmé!" Obi-Wan groaned, holding his back hip.

"You're wrong! Anakin was played by Palpatine. We all were. Only, he's the real victim in all of this. And… I'm the one to blame!" she stammered, feeling her heart sink.

Anakin was taken aback by her words. Were they true? Had Palpatine been lying to him from the start? Had he been using Padmé to manipulate him all along? Was he merely nothing more than a tool to him?

"I'm his weakness! It's my fault he turned to the dark side. Obi-Wan, he did this for love!" Padmé explained, fighting back the tears in her eyes. "Anakin would never intentionally harm anyone!"

Deep down, Obi-Wan knew she had a point. Each one of them had been cruelly deceived by this devil. But, regardless of Anakin's intensions, he was still a murderer, and he had his duty to perform. He could not let him escape. "Even if that's true, he's still a monster!" Obi-Wan quipped, as he struggled to stand up. Padmé had indeed wounded him. Fortunately for him, they were only flesh wounds.

"Anakin's not the monster, Obi-Wan. You are!

"How am I the monster?!" Obi-Wan sneered. He never imagined Padmé would side against him. Even through the force, he never sensed this would happen. What could this mean for the future of the Republic?

"Because of your willingness to kill him, without hesitation. Because, you're too blind to see the truth. Anakin was being used by the chancellor. We all were! Sidious is the Sith lord you've been after. He's the one who started this war. Single handedly destroying the Republic," Padmé snapped, as another realisation came to her. "Why do you think Palpatine stopped trying to assassinate me? Once he discovered Anakin and I were in love, he figured I was of more use to him alive than dead."

By now, Anakin was beyond heartbroken. Padmé was right! For weeks, she'd been warning him about the chancellor. Explaining how corrupted his was. Yet, he refused to believe her. He was just too caught up in Palpatine's lies to believe her. Until now. Palpatine never cared about peace, the Republic or the senate. But most importantly, he never cared about Padmé! He never intended to help him save her! Anakin couldn't believe how blind he had been.

"That may be true, but Padmé… I have my duty to perform. Yoda entrusted me with this mission. I handle Anakin, while he handles Sidious. Anakin is Sidious' apprentice. He must be stopped!" Obi-Wan stated, reaching out his hand.

Before she could fire, Padmé's blaster went flying out of her hand in Obi-Wan's. Padmé froze, as he tossed it a few meters aside. "I don't want to hurt you. But, you leave me no choice," he huffed, as he raised his hand.

"NO!" Anakin cried, igniting his sabre as he leapt off the platform. Slicing Obi-Wan's hand off, as he landed in front of him.

The pain was overwhelming. Obi-Wan screamed in agony, as his detached hand, hit the rocky ground. Not only was badly wounded from Padmé's shots, he had lost his hand. Obi-Wan let himself slump to the ground. There was no point in carrying on. He had been defeated. He could feel darkness overcoming him, as Anakin walked up to him. "Don't you dare hurt her!" were the last words he heard.

Anakin felt both rage and disgust, when he saw Obi-Wan's now pathetic sit both rage. Glancing down, he noticed his lightsabre was now detached from his belt. "Well, master…. you won't be needing this anymore," he winced, picking it up.

"Anakin!" Padmé gasped, running to embrace him.

"I'm so sorry," Anakin whimpered, no longer able to control his tears.

"It's wasn't your fault, Anakin. You were being used. We all were!" Padmé reassured, as he buried his face in her shoulder. "Sshh," she whispered, trying to silence his tears.

Even though he intended to save her, he was the one who had enabled Palpatine to take over. Hurting countless people. Taking their lives in order for Palpatine to help him save Padmé's. When in truth, was something he never intended to do. "You must know this was all for you! I just can't bear the thought of losing you. I can't!"

"Ani," Padmé sighed, cupping his face. "I swear to you, I'm perfectly healthy. So's our child. You're not going to lose me!" she exclaimed, as they broke apart.

"I love you… so much," Anakin murmured.

"I love you too. More than you know," Padmé replied, kissing him passionately.

Anakin returned the kiss with equal force. But, as much as he wanted to believe her, he couldn't. He knew Padmé's life was still in danger. As long as Palpatine lived, he could still take her life. Anakin knew Yoda would be no match for him. So, it was up to him. He had to kill him. He had to stop this devil from taking over the galaxy! "Palpatine must pay for what he's done! As long as he lives, he's a threat to us all."

Padmé nodded in agreement. "I know."

"Once we get back to Coruscant, I'll drop you off. Then, I'll confront him."

"No! I'm coming with you."

"Please, don't argue! It's the only way I can protect you," Anakin pleaded, cupping her hands.

"Ani, I'm going with you. Like it or not!" Padmé quipped, shaking their hands. "Plus, you're going to need my help. The only way to stop Palpatine, is to catch him off guard. And I can help you do that."

Anakin saw the determined look in her eyes. He always liked her way of thinking. And, he had underestimated her before. Padmé was definitely resourceful. "What do we do?" he asked, smirking.

"Just follow my lead," Padmé replied, smiling.