A/N: Sorry about the ridiculously long time between updates. I imagine many of you would like to Force choke me good. I really don't have anything to say for myself, other than other fandoms seduced me ( as they will! ), and this story and its parent kinda got forgotten for a while.
Okay, almost 3 years to the day, according to the stats. —hides and curls into the fetal position—
This chapter was originally a lot longer, and was going to be the final installment. I decided to split it in two because this part focuses on the battle and the next half deals with the aftermath and different issues.
So you get another chapter! Chapter 8 is 95 percent written-out in the spiral notebook, then I'll need another few days to type it up, since I can't touch-type and I have obligations that don't allow me to sit at the computer all day. But I PROMISE that it WILL be out very soon, unless something REALLY bad happens to me or my family. Finishing this story is my Number One fanfiction priority, and you will most definitely not be waiting longer than 8 days in a worst-case scenario ( right now I'm thinking 4 is probably a very reasonable expectation ).
Special thanks go to reviewer Steve Fett, for giving me the review that reminded me this story still existed, and prompted me to update it.
Oh, and you might want to go back and re-read the last part of Chapter 6, if you've been following this story for a while. The last 500 words mysteriously got cut out somehow, and I'm not sure how long it had been that way before I noticed and fixed it.
As always, visit my author bio for the most up-to-date information regarding these stories.
Chapter 7
"That's him! That's the one who attacked me!" Anakin hissed, "Let's finish him!" His yellow-and-crimson eyes smoldered with hatred. He went for his replacement lightsaber, only to have his master's withered hand catch his.
"Patience, my apprentice." Darth Sidious said in a low, crackling half-whisper.
Anakin moved his hand and looked put out.
The master Sith Lord lifted his head, unveiling a warped, deeply-wrinkled visage with loose bags of chalky-gray skin hanging rather unattractively from his heavily-aged face. A few stray strands of white hair poked out from the edges of his black hood. "Darth Vulcanus. An honor to meet you. My apprentice says you are unusually strong with the Dark Side and possess skills and powers that would make even me black with jealousy."
Vulcanus made a face. "He's right, but with a face like that the feeling can't be new to you. You're not just ugly, you're shockingly ugly."
The old Sith gritted his teeth menacingly, causing Vulcanus to cringe not in horror, but disgust. "You would do well to mind your manners, boy!"
"Or you'll, what? Glower at me some more?" He drew his lightsaber, activating it with a quick motion of the wrist.
Anakin and Darth Sidious quickly followed suit, their blue and red blades searing the air as they sprang into existence.
"Let's just get this over with. The sooner I kill you, the sooner I don't have to look at you." Vulcanus thrust his trusty red laser-blade straight forward like a spear, aiming for Sidious's throat. Sidious's own blade rose to parry it...crimson struck on blue, and Vulcanus's lightsaber was knocked off-target by Anakin's immediately before being cast off by Sidious's.
Sidious laughed as Vulcanus twirled his lightsaber back into a defensive position. "You're going to have to do much better." He leered at his opponent, certain of victory. Perhaps Skywalker had over exaggerated this, this Darth Vulcanus's powers. Even if he hadn't, it was going to take more than a few fancy sabering tricks and Force fire and ice to overcome him, his apprentice, and a small army of onhand clones. Now, young one, we shall put you to the test. He charged out with a perfectly-executed attack to the side, his faithful new apprentice backing him up.
Darth Vulcanus countered every intended blow expertly, fending off both lightsabers with the ease Sidious would one. Hmm. He is good. No wonder Vader was unable to take him alone.
Again and again his and Anakin's attacks came up short while their enemy lost no ground. Vulcanus's lightsaber was moving constantly — a snaking ribbon of red shooting into the path of each attack without tire.
It is more of a challenge. the younger Sith Lord was forced to concede. Anakin was no trouble at all — he could block him blindfolded with one arm tied behind his back. His master, on the other hand, was slower but more skillful in his approach. While Anakin whipped his weapon around in a furious frenzy, slashing and stabbing for a critical area every chance he got — sometimes at the detriment of his defense — the old Sith Lord was more concerned with a solid defense and only attacked when a reasonable opportunity for an actual hit on flesh presented itself. Together, they made a lethal combination. Anakin's whirlwind of fast-paced attacks kept Vulcanus on the constant defense, leaving him more open for Sidious. His master swordsmanship and incredible Force intuition and precognition kept him safe. The trouble was it was much harder to break two defenses than one.
Much as he loathed it, he was going to have to dip into his Force reserves to speed this battle up, even if it meant that much longer of a wait before he could go home. Oh well. At least I'll get to show off.
Tendrils of lightning!
Vulcanus brought his hand up and absorbed them back into the Force, simultaneously hopping back to avoid an Anakin slash. Why didn't I turn it back on him?
Habit.
Pure habit.
That was why.
Anakin narrowed his eyes and drew up his lip in a menacing, cocky smirk that was second-nature to Vulcanus's father. "What, no snarky quips or snappy comebacks this time? I thought you relished a challenge." His flesh-and-blood hand lashed out. Whipping currents of lightning charged from the fingertips and palm.
Vulcanus absorbed the attack through his invisible Force shield along with another from Sidious. Both Sith kept their Force lightning flowing, hoping to break through.
Vulcanus awarded them a lopsided grin. "Oh, but I do, and believe me, I have plenty to say." He mustered more of the Force behind his shield and launched it out in a massive shockwave of energy that swept the lightning all the way back to its source and knocked both Sith flat on their backs before they even had time to register, their lightsabers flying from their hands and automatically shutting off upon impact with the ground.
The assemblage of Storm Troopers lining the platform flinched, but made no move to help their fallen masters.
Vulcanus pointed his blazing blade at Anakin, who was already leaping to his feet. "You couldn't fight your way out of a wet paper bag, and you" he turned the lightsaber on Sidious, also in the process of recovering his footing, albeit more slowly, "are just pathetic. Oh sure, you like to play the part. Look at me, I'm a terrifying Sith Lord! Watch me throw lightning and toss big things around with the Force! Fear my lightsaber dueling skills, even though any little girl worth her salt could dodge my blows because I move like I have arthritis." He paused, shaking his head and tsk-tsking, thoroughly enjoying the dangerous glares being sent his way. "Please. Sorry, but the ability to clear a room simply by removing your hood doesn't count as a Force power. So far, Gramps, I haven't seen a shred of evidence to convince me that you even have any real power. I mean, aside from looking scary and sending your apprentice to do all your dirty work for you, what is it that you do?" He lifted his free hand to his face and examined his nails, a deliberate goad.
"You arrogant upstart!" Sidious's voice burned hot with hatred, "You can't possibly be a Sith, much less a Sith Lord like you claim. Where's this Force ice and Force fire you're supposed to have?"
The second the words were out Anakin shot a doubtful, almost worried look to his master. "Master, if I may —"
"You want to see them, do you? Happy to oblige!" Holding his lightsaber in place with the Force, Vulcanus cast both hands out in front of him and fired three generous-sized balls of fire in rapid succession from one hand while simultaneously mirroring the action with iceballs from the other.
Master and apprentice dove to either direction and called their lightsabers back to their hands, the blades snapping back to life in just enough time to be used against the flying shards of ice from the rupturing-in-midair iceballs. The fireballs hit the ship, leaving no marks on the highly heat-resistant surface.
"Fun as it is to play around with you guys, I have appointments to keep." Vulcanus announced airily, grabbing his floating lightsaber and switching it off. Time to kill this guy. He doubted very much that Anakin would continue to attack after that. But first, I'd better take out the Idiot Squad.
Sidious threw more Force lightning, which he easily avoided. Then, before the duo had a chance to do anything else, he gathered his legs up beneath him and sprang into the sky with a massive Force leap that propelled him a good fifty feet up. Landing on the strip of living Force he'd called beneath him, he extended his palms towards the gathering of Storm Troopers below.
"Fire! Kill him!" Darth Sidious commanded his lackies, a strong desperation to his fear-laced tone.
The troopers fired at precisely the moment Vulcanus unleashed a truly mighty form of Force push that reversed the direction of the blaster bolts and shoved all of the troopers on the left side of the ship over the edge of the landing. They fired blindly and helplessly as they fell, likely to their deaths. Vulcanus had to repeat the treatment for the second legion barely after the first had left his hands, harmlessly deflecting blaster fire and sending another twenty-five men tumbling over the edge. These, too, kept firing, though the only things they were hitting were the sides of buildings and each other.
Eugh! Vulcanus felt his windpipe start to constrict. Anakin or Sidious — maybe both — were trying to Force choke the daylights out of him.
Summoning a great surge of Force, he fought it off. Let the Force "floor" beneath him slip away.
As he dropped, he kept a sharp eye out for flying objects, blaster fire, or any other surprises. Anakin's master was desperate now and would do anything to snuff him out or escape.
Sidious turned to Anakin, and the young Jedi-turned-Sith saw the subtle-yet-unmistakable signature of panic reflected in his face and eyes. "He's too strong. We'd better retreat — for now." he said, and his voice cracked a little under the forced confidence.
Anakin nodded. "This isn't helping Padmé." And here Palpatine — Sidious — was sure, so sure this Sith was a phony we could easily beat together. Serious err in judgment. I have to wonder if he means what he says about there being a way to save Padmé…No. He's telling the truth about that. He has to be.
But if his new master was wrong about the number of Sith and Darth Vulcanus's threat level…no. He wasn't going there. Palpatine had already proven himself to be a knowledgeable expert; he couldn't be expected to know everything. And anyway, there was no going back. If trusting the Sith Lord turned out to be a mistake, it was one he was going to have to live with for the rest of his life.
But that was that — right now he had to concentrate on getting back to the ship, or he may very well not live long enough to worry about protecting Padmé or anyone else.
Letting Sidious lead, he hung back a bit, keeping a watchful eye on Vulcanus and prepared to defend himself and the key to Padmé's recovery.
Vulcanus was on the ground now. He had absolutely no intention of letting this universe's version of the man responsible for his mother's death — whether directly or not — get away when he had him so close. Oh no you don't.
Reaching out with his left hand and the Force, he picked the fleeing vermin up and pulled him towards him.
"Mmraaw!" Sidious's strangled growl of complaint was inhuman.
Anakin's hand shot out, and Vulcanus felt a strong tug of resistance as his airborne soon-to-be-kill slowed.
"I'm not letting you have him!" Anakin snarled savagely, his eyes large and frightening.
"Too bad you don't have any say in the matter." Vulcanus retorted, summoning an extra surge of Force that tore Sidious free and sent him vaulting a little ways past him. He cut his connection immediately and reactivated his lightsaber in a moment, concurrently Force choking both Sidious and his apprentice as he did so. He rolled his eyes. "That was embarrassingly easy. If you guys were a product, I'd get my money back."
"Gaaahh!" Sidious grasped his throat with both hands, struggling to free his windpipe. He was on his knees with his head bowed in agony, the hood of his cloak down to fully reveal his thin, blazing white hair.
Vulcanus could feel him fighting back with the Force. Pathetic. Useless. He reached him in a bound and poised his lightsaber dramatically over the ugly white head. Just because he could. "Not that it's going to make any big difference, but would you like to impart any dying words of wisdom on me? You may have a fraction of my power, but you look at least five times my age, and that has to count for something." He let up his Force chokehold just enough to make a reply possible.
Sidious gasped for breath. His eyes trailed first up the long red shaft of burning light, then into the proud, gleeful eyes of his enemy, where he saw two smaller, grimacing Sidiouses reflected back at him.
There was only one thing to do.
"Darth Vulcanus," he rasped, putting on his most respectful face, "Truly you are a great Sith. Possibly —"
"Sith Lord." Vulcanus snorted, wrinkling his nose in disgust. "To even suggest that I am less skilled than you is downright insulting."
"Sith Lord," Sidious corrected, "Possibly the best in the history of the galaxy—"
"No, definitely the best in the history of the galaxy, if you and your little pet are anything to go by." Vulcanus gestured offhand to Anakin, who was slumped over on the ground several feet away busily fighting against the Force.
Sidious had to quell the urge to grind his teeth. "Fine, the greatest Sith Lord in the history of the universe," he conceded with a sickly cough, still somehow managing to retain most of his respectful intonation, "the point is, for all your power and skill, you still lack experience. Join with me, and I will show you how to harness your talent and the Force in ways that will make you even more powerful. Together we will rule the galaxy!"
"Yeah? What about Anakin over there?" He lowered the point of his blade uncomfortably close to Sidious's neck.
The older man broke out into a sweat, eyes swelling nicely. "He is weak…useless. We don't need him. Kill him! Kill him and become my new apprentice! With my experience and your power, we'll be unstoppable!"
Anakin cocked his head and glared at his master. His expression was pure hatred. Neither Vulcanus nor Sidious seemed to realize that he was free.
Amusement play over Vulcanus's features; this guy would do anything to save his own butt. "Thanks, but if that's all your apprentices mean to you, I'd rather marry a Hutt. Besides, I already have a master, and he's exponentially better than five of you." He laughed at the way Sidious paled at that. Then he turned his Force choke back up so that the other Sith Lord was once again battling for breath, the cold air never making its way into his tired, aching lungs. "That's right: I'm just the apprentice. A shame you couldn't meet my master; the best only comes from the best. But then, you probably wouldn't want to. He wouldn't let you prattle on with lame self-serving propositions nearly as long as I just did. Goodbye."
One quick swipe and Sidious was headless. The pieces fell to the platform with a heavy 'thump'.
That felt good.
No matter what the universe, it simply wasn't a good idea for Darth Sidious to go messing with the Skywalkers. If his and his father's doppelgangers wouldn't do anything about it, Darth Vulcanus would. Scum like that should not be allowed to waste air, much less lord over any form of Skywalker.
Anakin.
Sensing a threat, Vulcanus whirled on him, lightsaber raised defensively. Anakin's eyes followed the blade, but he didn't look as though he feared it. "If you insist, we can finish this. But to be honest, I'd be just as happy to let you go. I've got things to do, places to go, and I'm already falling behind schedule." Please, please go away. I really don't want to maim or kill you.
He dared not try to knock him unconscious — there was always a chance he'd hit him too hard.
Once, when he was just eight years old, he'd accidentally killed a friend that way. The only friend he'd had at the time, actually. They'd been rough-housing — normal boy stuff — and in the heat of the moment Vulcanus threw him back with an instinctual Force shove, causing the back of his head to crack against the corner of a counter. When he didn't get back up, Vulcanus initially thought he was still playing. When the horrible truth sank in, he'd been devastated. His father had comforted him, of course, but from that point on he took special care never to use his Force powers against friends or anyone he'd mind killing, even in play. To this day he still misjudged his power sometimes, and when he was in front of his subjects he always pretended it was intentional.
Anakin met his gaze, unfaltering, tufts of golden-brown hair ruffling in the crisp breeze. He still feels sooo familiar somehow…why?
The air was filled with the hums and whirs of a thousand flying motor vehicles as Coruscant continued with its busy day-to-day in the background, unaware of the Jedi's massive loss and the showdown happening on their temple's landing platform.
Ignorant.
So very ignorant.
Blissfully unaware that their lives could be changed forever in the bat of an eye.
For a moment, neither Skywalker said a word, each attuning to the lifestream of the Force and waiting for the other to make his move.
Anakin's eyes shunted briefly to the spacecraft, where a trio of Storm Troopers were just emerging from the hatch — probably to check on the situation. They started to raise their weapons, but Anakin stopped them with a gesture of his hand.
Refocusing on Vulcanus, he spoke. "You truly are as great a Sith Lord as you say. My master was foolish to so gravely underestimate you." To Vulcanus's surprise he kneeled down on one knee. Keeping that same calm and highly respectful tone, he continued. "I would be honored to be your apprentice. Sidious was a snake and I never should have trusted him."
Vulcanus broke out into a grin. Hah! This is rich! If only Dad could see me now! A version of him bowing to me…his expression would be priceless. "As tempting as the offer is, I really don't have time for an apprentice these days." He deactivated his weapon. Put it back in place.
Anakin blinked and appeared confused. "What? But I still have so much to learn…"
"And I'm sure you'll do fine on your own." Vulcanus said, "With Sidious out of the picture and the Jedi decimated, you can take over and become Galactic Emperor or something. I don't know. It's your life. Just leave me out of it, because once I leave you're never going to see me again." He spun on his heel and started walking towards the bridge, never letting his guard down even with his back turned.
"But the secret to stopping death!" Anakin called, racing after him, "I must have it!"
"I wouldn't mind having it too." Vulcanus replied without looking back. A simple leap back on to the bridge and he's stuck down here talking to himself…what the…Obi-Wan?
The Jedi was running up along the bridge, shouting something Vulcanus couldn't make out.
He squinted, trying to get a better look.
He appeared to be chasing something…
"You mean you don't know how to stop death?" Anakin was closer now — almost within lightsaber range. His frustration was obvious.
"No." Vulcanus was only half paying attention, "Not even my master knows that."
Anakin refused to believe it. "But Sidious said —"
"Sidious would say anything to get you on his side," Vulcanus stated, unknowingly confirming Anakin's worst fears, "He'd promise the power of the Big Bang and the Elixir of Eternal Youth if he had to, no matter how impossible it would be for him to deliver. Guy like that — honesty's not really high on his list." He coiled the muscles in his legs, focusing intently on the bridge one-hundred feet overhead. "I'm outta here!"
