How To Split Up The Hard Way

"No, no, no, and no. Not happening." Anakin met Kenobi's eyes. The Jedi Master just stood there with his arms crossed over his chest, very irritated and not at all amused. "There is no way we are splitting up. We have not been here in over a year, we have no idea what to expect."

"And what, exactly, could happen, Anakin?"

Skywalker threw his arms out in frustration. "My point exactly! I don't know!"

Obi Wan sighed and dropped his head down. Oh, it was easy to tell what he was thinking. Undoubtedly, he suspected this to be just another one of Anakin's paranoia attacks. The idea was not exactly unjustified considering what had just happened when Anakin let his imagination get away from him again, and it possibly did have something to do with that. The younger Jedi would have admitted that he certainly did not want to be left alone- not right now, and definitely not here. Anakin felt it to be more than that though. It was unwise to split up in a practically unknown territory; not only that, but it just did not feel right. Something kept pressing him to stay with his former Master. "Look," Obi Wan lifted his head again with determination in his eyes, "I have no more desire to be here than you do. Which is why-" Anakin opened his mouth to speak, "let me finish- which is why you should go that way, and I should go this way. We will keep an open commlink, and meet back up when we are done. If we go together and head down the wrong tunnel, then we will have just wasted whatever time we took wandering around.

"I will be fine, Anakin. We have survived much more than going separate ways. As a matter of fact, as I recall, you're the one who enjoys running off, jumping out of vehicles, and disappearing at the most inopportune moments. You're the last person that I would have suspected of protesting the arrangement."

Anakin bit down on his lower lip. "You're missing the point," he restrained himself from gritting his teeth at Obi-Wan as he spoke, "It's not just the splitting up. I have a very bad feeling about this place."

"You have a bad feeling." Obi Wan repeated in what was almost a whisper. "Anakin, you have a bad feeling about everything." Point regretfully taken, from his Master's point of view anyway. Anakin could have argued it, but that would have meant telling Obi-Wan about some "unsatisfactory" things that he had done- his getting married for instance.

Anakin started to speak again, but ultimately decided not to continue. Obi-Wan had made up his mind and, at this point, arguing was useless. For once Anakin hoped to be wrong; both for his and his Master's sake. "Fine." The word was scarcely audible, but Obi-Wan heard it.

After giving Anakin the com frequency he would be on, the two went their separate ways; Kenobi taking the right and Skywalker taking the left.

Anakin walked along in silence with his saber still lighting his way. The tunnel walls were rugged and crumbled. The lighting once again created an unnerving effect against the rocks, but Anakin did not notice this time as he let his mind wander to other things, comforting things. Things such as running into the arms of the wife he had not seen or spoken to in over four months. Communication while he was away was far too risky; should the Jedi ever discover his marriage, he would be removed from the Jedi Order or they would have him annul the marriage and they would never be allowed to see each other again. The latter was simply not an option for him even though they might as well not be married considering how little they had seen each other since their wedding.

Anakin took in a deep breath and ducked his head as the ceiling of the tunnel grew lower. "As soon as this war is over," he thought to himself, "I'm done with the Jedi Order." Few condoned his presence in the Order, and only one originally wanted him to be a part. He would not be missed and would be perfectly happy living out the rest of his life with Padmé. They could grow old together, have children, and spend time together publically without fear of someone trying to keep them apart. Ah, that would be a day to remember.

"Anakin, can you hear me?" The Jedi took a deep breath in irritation at his thoughts being interrupted.

"Yes."

"How is it going on your end?"

"Hang on a second and let me see." Anakin took a look at the endless tunnel as it continued deeper down into the planet and continued on walking down it. "Same as when we got here- pointless."

He could imagine Obi Wan rolling eyes at the remark. "I hate to say it, but that is exactly what it looks like here. I have no clue where I'm going."

"Nowhere fast?" Obi-Wan's chuckle echoed from the comm and through the barren walls of the tunnel.

"Point taken. Let's turn around and meet back up. We need a new strategy."

Anakin did not respond, but narrowed his eyes at the tunnel in front of him. "Anakin?"

"Hang on-" He extinguished his lightsaber to find that his eyes were not deceiving him. A faint light bounced against the rocks from around the sharp curve ahead. Anakin quietly stepped forward, his senses carefully attuned to his surroundings. At first everything was quiet, both in air around him and in the Force. The calm was almost unnatural, especially where Anakin was concerned.

"Anakin?" Obi Wan's voice broke his concentration.

"Master," Anakin gritted his teeth in annoyance, "hush. I'm trying the focus."

"Sorry, I forgot how difficult that is for you." Anakin rolled his eyes and turned off the comm for the time being. Shutting his eyes he submerged himself in the Force only to find it strangely allusive. In frustration, he opened his eyes again and made his way around the corner.

The sight before him was one that neither he nor anyone else had expected to behold. He stood at the mouth of the tunnel staring at thousands of inactive battle droids. They were hooked to tall racks hanging in five vertical rows with twenty-five in each row; hundreds of these racks filled the expansive cavern. The lighting came from dim panels in the walls and floor of the area, glistening off the mettle of the droids and their racks. A console stood in the middle of the droids in a circular shape, save the space allowed for a person to step into the middle of it- the control for the droids, no doubt.

Anakin stepped out and walked around in awe. The idea that the Separatist would not only leave behind what had to be an expensive investment in their troops, but also that they made no attempt to retrieve it either sent his mind spinning. To get this back would have been worth the effort in his opinion; unless only certain people knew about it, then it would make sense. Why retrieve something that you never knew existed?

Ever the schemer, Anakin let a seed of an idea form in his mind. If they could reprogram these droids and plant them into the Separatist army, it would be sabotage at its greatest! They could track them and locate the base, and by the time the Jedi troops arrived, it would be a simple matter of taking the leaders into custody. A large amount of well-disguised "spies" such as these and the Separatist would not have a chance.

Anakin pulled out his commlink and turned it back on. "Master, forget the computers. You are not going to believe what I found!" The only response was silence. Anakin looked down at his commlink to see that the light indicating that he was transmitting was off. The Jedi stared at the comm; usually these things only stopped working on him when he threw them very hard.

Laying the comm down on the console, Anakin shut his eyes and attempted to contact the other Jedi through the Force. He furrowed his brow in determination. Despite the unusual amount of effort he put into it, Anakin could not get a firm grasp on the Force and, if anything, he was losing his hold on what he had. He started to panic as the Force around and in him became abnormally weak. It flickered out momentarily, leaving him in an uncomfortable silence before uncontrollably and painfully washing over him, knocking him to the ground.

Anakin's body burned and stung as though on fire causing him to tremor involuntarily. His vision blurred and his ears filled with a sharp, high-pitch ringing. Anakin shook in his breath at the distantly familiar feeling and attempted to sit up but his arms failed him, and the floor and walls started to spin around him filling him with a sick feeling as another wave swept over him and his body elected to slip into painless unconsciousness.

"Anakin? Anakin, don't you turn me off!" Obi Wan glared to the comm in his hand. Anakin was right, it was a bad idea to split up. "I should have made you stay with me. But no, I had to trust you to not do anything stupid!" The Jedi ranted on even though he was well aware that his former padawan was unable to hear him. At least he when he found the boy he will have practiced very well what to say. "There is a reason for keeping an open comm. You cannot just turn it off because you feel like it." As Obi Wan stormed down the tunnel he started to turn an unusual shade of pink in his cheeks and his accent came out heavily as he shouted at the empty walls. "But it doesn't matter how many times I tell you, you just don't listen do you?"

"One of these days he is going to regret his little stunts." Obi-Wan stopped and leaned one hand against the wall, purposefully controlling his breathing in attempt to relieve his anger. "Or make me regret it." Though Jedi were not to form attachments or give place to fear, sometimes it was inevitable. Even Jedi Master Obi Wan Kenobi would admit to his own weakness. The day that his worst fear would come true would be the day he would have to see Anakin's body cremated because he had got himself killed. "Stupid but brave." Obi Wan gave a half grin. No one would ever be able to accuse Anakin of going down without a fight, or without a reason, but the boy still jumped without looking at times.

Obi Wan started off again and had made good headway when warnings in the Force spiked inside of him. The ground shook beneath him violently. The Jedi lost his balance, slamming full force into the floor of the tunnel. The walls started to collapse around him and rocks showered down narrowly missing him. Obi Wan pulled himself to his feet and ran down the tunnel, hoping beyond hope that Anakin was all right.

The quake grew even more violent as flames suddenly swept up the tunnel towards him. The Jedi lifted his hand to contain it with the Force when the floor suddenly gave way beneath him and Obi Wan fell through, never feeling the collision with the ground far beneath.