Chapter Eight
Obi-Wan's POV
I had to sit through another council meeting the next morning. This time, we finally had news about the Jedi we had lost contact with.
All in all, twenty-seven Jedi had been killed, including ten Padawan's. The loss was shocking, and the clones that had reported it had sent their apologies. By now, the news of Palpatine's betrayal and the executive order had reached everyone.
The council was already short a member, following a retirement. So out of those remaining eleven masters, three had died. That left only eight.
Four more Jedi would have to be chosen to take their places, but the process was long and difficult, sometimes taking even longer than the senate to make a decision.
The new Chancellor had still not been chosen. Although they had at least narrowed down the nominees to four, it would still be at least two days before anything was settled.
Dooku was waiting for me outside, practicing his catching with the stone again. He was getting better, and he had managed to get through dinner the night before without incident, even if he did have to eat slowly.
At least he was being patient. This meeting was dragging on, mostly discussing the strategy to find Darth Sidious.
We could either find him, or let him strike first.
The locations Dooku had given us had mostly been checked, but with no signs of the Sith Lord. I hadn't been too surprised, considering Darth Sidious wasn't that foolish.
"There are still four planets that we haven't checked, we should try there before looking in other locations," Kit Fisto argued.
"Sidious is not going to hide where he knows we may look for him," Saesee Tinn said.
"He might, just because it would be unexpected," I joined in. I hadn't spoken for most of the meeting, and the masters looked over at me with some surprise.
"All the same, we should extend the search to other possible systems," Saesee Tinn suggested.
"Why not systems nearby the places Dooku gave us?" I suggested. Silence and curious looks met my suggestion, so I explained.
"Sidious had those locations planned for some time, and he may not have counted on all those places becoming known to us. If he had to make a last-minute change, it might be somewhere nearby those places."
"True, and he would need either a Separatist planet, or one he could easily hide on," Mace said.
Suddenly, the most obvious idea came to mind.
"What if he went home?" I asked.
The masters all looked at me again with confusion written on their faces.
"Even Palpatine had a family, what if he went home to them on Naboo? He could give some convincing story about the news being wrong and make them believe he's a martyr. They would protect him, help him," I reasoned.
"I think you may want to get in touch with Senator Amidala," Mace said, his face looking grave.
"Actually, there may be someone else who might know more..." I realized, rising to test my theory.
Dooku's POV
When Obi-Wan came out alone I looked up, wondering if something was wrong.
"Can you come in here for a minute?" He asked, waving me in. I followed uncertainly, but he smiled at me and I trusted him.
"Count, a question we have for you," Master Yoda said. I bowed respectfully once I reached the center of the circle. Obi-Wan left my side to return to his seat.
"I will do my best to answer it," I replied. I had removed many of my mental shields, letting the council probe as they wished. I felt Obi-Wan send me a wave of comfort and support through our bond.
"Do you know of Palpatine's family on Naboo?" Master Windu asked.
"I know he has some there," I replied, "I'm not quite sure of the details though, I'm afraid."
"Any idea where they live?"
"I believe he grew up in the capital city, but I might be wrong about that. Senator Amidala would know," I suggested, wondering why I was being asked.
"We tried contacting her, she's in a senate meeting," Mace said.
"Do you think it possible that he might go back to Naboo?" Obi-Wan asked. I could feel his frustration at the council and realized that he had just asked me the question that was at the heart of the matter. So they hadn't found him.
I realized how empty the council chambers were. Four members were missing. Probably on away missions, like so many others.
"He might, he has lost his disguise and will need a new persona to hide behind while he comes up with a new plan. He did the same thing between the Naboo crisis and the Battle of Geonosis. He had not counted on you killing Darth Maul," I spoke directly to Obi-Wan now. Even looking away from the other masters to look him in the eye. "And he had to wait before he made another move."
"And so he could train you," Kit Fisto said.
"I don't deny it," I replied, "But I'm not proud of it. I'm telling you what I know, and doing my best to help you."
"Thank you for that information," Obi-Wan broke in, cutting Mace off. "Do you have anything to add?" He asked, looking me in the eye.
"Only that General Grievous would likely be told to go meet with the Separatists while Darth Sidious hides. It might be an opportune time to take care of him and perhaps convince the Separatists to rejoin the Republic."
"Any idea where Grievous would meet them?" Obi-Wan asked. He had taken over the questioning, and had done a good job of it too.
"The last I knew, and this may have change, the Separatists were moved to Utupaeu," I said.
"Thank you, Dooku. I shouldn't be much longer," Obi-Wan dismissed me with a smile.
I bowed again, mostly to Obi-Wan and left the chamber, returning to my seat in the waiting area.
I caught the stone seven times in a row.
Anakin's POV
The next morning, I was still wrestling with the idea of talking with Obi-Wan. He probably thought I was on Naboo, and I didn't want him to know I had lied to him. It wasn't as if I had a choice. I couldn't have told him the truth, and I still didn't know if I would.
Padme had been right the night before, but I was still very unsure about how to tell Obi-Wan that I wanted to leave the Jedi – preferably not because I had been expelled.
Padme was at a meeting to help the candidate she was supporting, and who was probably the best one for the Republic's sake.
I sat there, debating what to tell Obi-Wan. Simply that I was having nightmares concerning someone I was close with and was considering leaving the Jedi to satisfy some personal dreams?
He would be disappointed. I didn't know if I could stand to see the look on his face when I told him. After years of training and service to the Jedi, he would be furious that I would turn my back on them now.
I didn't expect it to be easy, but I had almost made up my mind. Could I live this double life any longer? Especially with a child, who would be wondering where I was. Even if I tried, I would eventually be discovered.
I had been shielding my bond and Force presence, and I was taken completely by surprise when the door to the apartment opened.
And there stood Obi-Wan, looking even more stupefied than me.
"Anakin? Force, what are you doing here?" Obi-Wan asked, his eyes wide with surprise.
I stood up, my mouth hanging open as I searched for a reply.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, trying to draw the attention off of me.
"Don't even try to change the subject Anakin," Obi-Wan snapped.
I stood up, wondering whether to be honest with Obi-Wan or not.
"I came to see if Padme was okay… Palpatine was her friend and I thought he might try to get at her," I said.
Obi-Wan didn't believe me, it was obvious in the way he looked at me, but he seemed to think that he would prefer to accept that explanation.
"Well, I'm following much the same idea. I came to see if Padme knew where the Palpatine's family is," Obi-Wan said, "Do you want to help? Since you're not taking advantage of that vacation."
I could sense his disappointment in me, but since he asked me to help, I realized he couldn't be too mad.
"Sure, Padme is not here right now, but she'll be back eventually," I said.
"We could access the Naboo security files right?" Obi-Wan asked.
Yes, we could do it, but I was unsure about doing that. I wondered for a moment why Obi-Wan hadn't just gone through the Jedi Archives, rather than trying to hack through a senator's computer.
And so I asked him.
