Chapter 14: Still the Same
Anakin was sitting in his room meditating. For the last three months he was on this ship, three months since he was under Sidious's ruling, three months since he last saw his wife and children. Opening his eyes, he looked over at the holo on his stand. Lifting it up, he smiled a little. The holo was of Padmé sitting out on the veranda of their Lake Country home with Luke and Leia in her arms. Looking up, he heard a knock on the door. Putting the holo back in the drawer, he stood up. "Yes," he answered.
"My lord, we have arrived at Coruscant," Ozzle informed.
"Why are we at Coruscant?" Anakin demanded opening the door.
"The Emperor has requested your presence my lord," Ozzle got out nervously.
Anakin narrowed his eyes. "Very well, have Piett and TK153 waiting at the ship for me as usual," he ordered.
"Yes my lord," Ozzle answered before leaving.
Anakin closed the door, pinching the bridge of his nose with a frustrated sigh. Pulling on his hood, he left his quarters. Putting the security code into the data pad so no one could get into anything while he was gone, Anakin turned and went to the main hanger.
When he arrived at the Imperial Palace, Anakin got off his ship and looked toward his friends. "Keep an eye on everything," he told them. Piett nodded his head slowly as he stood by the ship with Dacken on the other side of the ramp.
Entering the Emperor's office, Anakin bent down on one knee. "What is thy bidding my master?" he asked. Sidious turned around in his chair, his yellow eyes staring at the young man before him.
"Lord Vader, you have not been doing your job," he commented.
"I am searching for the traitors my Master," Anakin insisted.
"You are not looking hard enough," Sidious hissed at him.
Anakin kept his head lowered, closing his eyes tight. "You are not doing your job Lord Vader," he snapped.
"I am awaiting your orders my Master," Anakin answered.
Sidious's eyes were glaring at Anakin. "My orders? In order to get orders my apprentice is to contact me! It shouldn't be my job to chase you," Sidious snapped.
"I have been trying to find the traitors Master that I haven't been able to con…" he was cut off with a jolt of electricity shooting through is body.
Crying out in pain, Anakin fell to the floor as the sheering pain from the electricity rushing through his body. "Do not argue with me!" Sidious snapped. Feeling the pain rush through him, Anakin tried to sit up when Sidious pumped more electric volts into his body. "You will pay for your lack of respect," Sidious snapped before he continued with his torture. Anakin was screaming in pain as the pain ripped through his body.
On the roof, Dacken could feel Anakin's torture. "Something's going on," he told Piett.
"Should we do something?" Piett asked.
Dacken's eyes moved towards the door. "No, Sidious will not kill him. He still needs Anakin alive," he answered.
After what felt like an eternity, the torture stopped and Anakin was lying on the floor gasping for air. "Do not fail me again Lord Vader," Sidious snapped.
"Yes…Master…" Anakin answered, pain etched in his voice.
"Now get out of my sight!" Sidious snapped.
Slowly getting up off the floor, Anakin left the room while trying to fight to stay conscious.
When he was able to reach the landing platform, Anakin just stared at his two friends before his body gave out and he collapsed to the ground. Dacken and Piett ran over to him. The Paladin Master placed his hand on Anakin's head, checking for a life Force reading. "He's alive, we need to get him out of here," he told Piett. Nodding in agreement, they both got Anakin onto the ship and flew back to the Star Destroyer, what they didn't know was they had a stowaway onboard.
Piett turned on the comlink. "Ozzle, this is Lieutenant Piett, I am informing you on Lord Vader's behalf that we are on our next mission. You are in charge while Vader is in absence," he instructed.
"Very good Lieutenant," Ozzle answered before the transmission was cut.
"Set a course for Naboo," Dacken instructed.
Piett nodded before putting in the coordinates.
Back on Naboo, Padmé was playing with the twins. Luke let out a gurgle before putting his rattle in his mouth. "And it goes right in the mouth," Padmé quipped smiling at her children. Leia let out a shriek of laughter as she shook her hands when one of her toys made a funny noise. "I still can't believe you two are eight months old, where does the time go?" she asked quietly.
"Mistress Padmé," Threepio called as he made his way to her.
"Yes Threepio?" she answered.
"We have visitors my lady," the gold droid told her.
Padmé gave him a quizzical look. "Keep an eye on the twins," she told him.
"Of course," he answered as she left the room.
Walking out onto the veranda, she let out a gasp to see Piett and Dacken trying to get an unconscious Anakin out of the boat. "Anakin!" she gasped hurrying down the stairs. They looked up as she was beside Anakin. "What happened?" she asked.
"Sidious," was Dacken's only answer as they got Anakin inside.
"Set him right here," she told them, gesturing to the couch.
She undid his cloak from around his neck, tossing it aside. "Ani," she whispered, her hands on his face. She stroked his cheek gently with her thumb. "Ani, can you hear me?" she asked quietly. Anakin groaned softly as he started coming to. "Anakin," she whispered.
Opening his eyes, his vision was blurred when he saw Padmé kneeling beside him. "Padmé…" he started as he tried to sit up.
"No, don't try to sit up," Padmé told him as she tried to push him back down.
Feeling the after affects from the torture grip him, it didn't take much convincing to lie back down. "Anakin what happened?" Dacken asked.
"Sidious is displeased with my actions lately," Anakin replied.
He winced, letting out a deep breath. "Force lightning. Still hurts like last time," he muttered closing his eyes tight. Padmé stroked her husband's hair when Luke crawled over and stood up by the couch.
"Da, da, da, da," the boy gurgled as he pulled on his father's sleeve.
Anakin stared in disbelief. "When did he start talking?" he asked as he lifted his son up into his arms.
"They both began talking a week ago," she replied smiling.
Anakin stared at his son in disbelief as the baby sat down on his stomach letting out a noise. "I just cannot believe how big they are," he murmured. Sitting up slowly, he kissed his son's forehead when he suddenly felt a presence. Padmé saw his blue eyes turn cold, a stare going towards the door.
"Ani…" she started when Leia was tugging on her mother's dress.
"Ma, ma, ma," the baby called holding her little arms out to be held.
Padmé held her daughter in her arms. "Someone's here," Anakin informed as he went to stand up.
"Anakin don't try to get up or fight anyone, you are in no position to do anything of the sort," Dacken told his apprentice.
"I will do what I must if I have to protect my family," Anakin replied defiantly.
Luke rested his little head on his father's chest, his tiny hands gripping his father's tunic as the young man walked out onto the veranda. "I thought you were told to never come back?" he asked as he covered his son up with his cloak. Obi-Wan stood there in silence.
"I am not here to fight you," Obi-Wan replied.
Anakin made sure his son was hidden from his old Master's prying eyes. "You are not taking my family from me," he said coldly.
"Anakin, I am here to speak in a peaceful manner. Nothing aggressive, I promise," Obi-Wan answered.
"Why should I trust you? You tried to kill me in front of my own wife the last time we met," Anakin pointed out.
Obi-Wan let out a heavy sigh. "I am not going to kill you," he assured him. To prove his point, the Jedi General took his light saber and tossed it on the ground. "I am here to help you. I have been keeping an eye on you from afar during the last three months since your return to the Star Destroyer," Obi-Wan informed.
"You've been spying on me? How could you do this without me feeling your presence?" Anakin demanded.
"I have been shielding myself, to make sure that you couldn't see me and that I was able to see if what Padmé and Dacken have told me is true," Obi-Wan answered.
"Da, da, da, da," Luke gurgled, pulling on his father's tunic with a gurgle.
Anakin sighed as he rubbed his son's back. "Your children, they are strong with the Force as you are," Obi-Wan commented.
"I am aware of that, very aware," Anakin replied still not trusting him.
Obi-Wan nodded his head slowly. "You won't teach your children the ways of the Jedi, I won't allow it," Anakin told him.
"You will teach them the forbidden way?" Obi-Wan asked.
"You mean the better way? A way that my children can still live normal lives instead of being torn away from their parents at such a young age? To cut love from their lives and to lock it up telling them that it is forbidden and for people with their abilities it doesn't exist?" Anakin demanded.
The younger man shook his head slowly. "The Jedi have made it sound like the love for a parent, or a lover, or a child is the path of the dark side. The Jedi are not to mourn or miss ones they have lost, but why? What makes love so evil? It isn't evil, I won't let you take that away from Luke and Leia," he added.
"They could fall into that path," Obi-Wan answered.
Anakin shook his head again. "Not with me as their trainer, if they even wish to be trained. I will teach them how to control their powers, the rest of the training is up to them," he added. Luke looked up at his father with bright blue eyes. Kissing the top of his son's head, he cradled him close.
"Even if they wanted to be train, it is impossible for you to take two apprentices," Obi-Wan pointed out.
"I am not a Jedi anymore," Anakin replied.
Anakin glanced back at the living room before looking back at Obi-Wan. "I am a Paladin Apprentice to Master Dacken. I am not teaching my son and my daughter the ways of the Jedi. They will learn the ways of the Paladin where they don't have to be emotionless people to live their lives. To only learn the Light side of the Force, but to learn the Dark Side and what to do when the anger and the hate begins to surface. You can't cut out anger and hate forever, Obi-Wan, everyone has hate. Qui-Gon hated, he also loved too. I know all about it. What puzzles me is that you saw it all, you saw the bad effects love had on Qui-Gon, but you also saw the good too. If it weren't for Tahl, Qui-Gon would've been a full-blown Sith lord," Anakin pointed out.
"It was love that made him hate," Obi-Wan answered.
"You can't have love without hate! You can't have happiness without anger! You can't just keep some emotions and ignore others!" Anakin exclaimed.
Luke began to whimper softly from the frustration he was feeling from his father. "Sorry, Luke, I'm sorry," Anakin whispered softly as he cradled him close, trying to calm him.
"Anakin, there are reasons the Jedi have done the things they have done," Obi-Wan answered.
"Well then you and whatever Jedi is left that I haven't killed should think the oath over," Anakin told him before turning around to reenter the house.
Just before he walked in the door, the former Jedi Knight stopped and looked over his shoulder. "You are not my enemy, Obi-Wan, but you're not my ally either," he added before going inside. Instead of leaving however, Obi-Wan sat outside as he tried to ponder everything Anakin had told him.