Gathering of the Sith

He sat up in alarm and was greeted by blinding brightness. He shielded his eyes with his arm. Birds chirped overhead, and he blinked as his eyes finally adjusted to the light. He appeared to be in a flourishing forest. The ground beneath him was hard, and he shakily stood up. He caught movement in the corner of his eye and quickly turned to see what it was. A collection of dazed people was picking themselves off of the ground. So, it appeared he wasn't the only one who had no idea where he was or who he was. He scanned the small group of darkly dressed people, and his eyes settled on someone in a dark hood and mask. He couldn't be completely sure, but he thought the masked figure was staring at him.

"Hello, comrades," a deep voice addressed. Anakin turned to see a tall, skinny, bald man with pale, torn skin addressing the group. "I can see that you are all a bit dazed. Do not worry. You are in no danger," the man continued. As he spoke, the masked figure from earlier went to stand next to the pale man's side. The pale man then approached one of the members of the group while his masked counterpart stayed put. "You," he said to a man with red and black skin that was covered in small horns. "Are Darth Maul, apprentice of Darth Sidius. You are a skilled, ruthless warrior."

Darth Maul studied the pale man, but made no move of hostility. The pale man moved on.

"Asajj Ventress," he said to the next person in line. "You are a brave, cunning assassin and apprentice to Count Dooku."

These names began to sound familiar, and he felt as if he was on the verge of recovering a memory when he was interrupted by the pale man.

"And you are called Savage Oppress." This man looked strikingly similar to Darth Maul with small horns and patterned skin. "You are also a skilled warrior and have been trained by Count Dooku and Asajj Ventress."

Ventress and Savage Oppress exchanged a look. It was clear they were trying to remember each other but couldn't quite do it.

The pale man approached an older man with white hair and a white beard, "You are Count Dooku, a mighty leader of the Sith and great war general and apprentice to Darth Sidius."

Count Dooku looked pleased with his description.

The pale man went to the next man. He was old with wrinkled skin and blazing yellow eyes. The pale man smiled eerily and chuckled, "You are Darth Sidius. You are a master of strategy and manipulation and have accomplished more than most Sith ever will."

Darth Sidius grinned manically.

"And you," the pale man said, finally turning towards him. "Are Darth Vader, apprentice to Darth Sidius and a true master of the Force. Your very name brings fear to those who hear it."

Everything else had seemed so familiar, but his own description didn't seem completely right. He felt as if something was being left out. Something was missing from his story. He looked towards the others. They were all eying each other suspiciously.

Ventress finally spoke up, "And who are you?"

"I am Supreme Leader Snoke. I am the one who has summoned you from your graves." Everything became quiet. Even the forest hushed. The only sound was the whisper of the wind through the leaves. "Yes, you were all dead," Snoke continued. "But I have brought you back for a reason. The Jedi are rising again, and we must stop them."

"The Jedi?" Count Dooku asked.

"Yes, the arrogant fools who call themselves protectors of peace. They have led to all of your demises in some way or another. Once you regain your memory, you will see that I am right and that we need to stop them immediately."

"No."

Everyone turned to him.

"There's something you're leaving out."

"Well, I can't explain everything," Snoke said. "You are just going to have to be patient until your memory returns."

"No, thanks," he declined. He couldn't explain why, but he didn't feel right being here. He didn't belong with these people. Maybe he did at one point, but he didn't anymore.

"Then it looks like I will have to return you to the grave from whence you came," Snoke said darkly.

"Wait!" the masked figure said. "Let him go. I'm sure he will return once he remembers everything."

"Very well, my apprentice," Snoke said. "But if you are wrong, you will pay the price."

He turned to leave the Sith and walked to the edge of the meadow, but paused and gave the masked figure one last glance before disappearing into the woods.

O

His memories returned to him, strong and painful. At first, he only remembered the Dark. He remembered feeling angry yet powerful. He remembered how ruthless he was and all that he had accomplished under this ruthlessness. He knew he had to return to Snoke and the other Sith, but then he remembered her.

Padmé Amidala. His wife.

Then everything was a hurricane of swirling memories of his life on Tatooine with his mother, meeting Qui-Gon Jinn, training under Obi-Wan Kenobi, teaching Ahsoka, fighting in the Clone Wars alongside Captain Rex, and meeting his son, Luke, many years later.

He knew the terrible things he had done. He also knew that he couldn't return to Snoke, but he also knew he couldn't stop Snoke and the Sith on his own.

This planet was far too primitive and disconnected from the rest of the galaxy for him to know exactly where, and when, he was. His only choice was to hide away where they couldn't find him. He wasn't about to aid the Sith, but he couldn't stop them either. His best option was to disconnect himself from the Force and his own destructive powers. He had caused enough damage for one lifetime.

A/N: I know Ventress, Count Dooku, and Anakin also had Jedi masters, but I excluded them on purpose because I'm sure it wouldn't be very strategically wise of Snoke to mention that, so I didn't include that.