A/N: I'm NOT sorry for the cliffhanger from the last chapter and neither am I sorry for the one in this chapter. But know this, we have one more chapter before the epilogue. I have enjoyed writing this story and look forward to continuing it through the sequel.

Charlie.


Padme stared out into the skyline of Coruscant. It felt like only moments ago that Obi-Wan had contacted Anakin bringing the news of Grievous's demise. It felt like only moments ago that Anakin had left without a word. In truth it had been two hours. She watched the jedi temple in the distance, all was quiet. A little too quiet to her liking. Padme turned away from the view knowing that Anakin wouldn't magically appear if she kept watching for him. Taking a deep breath, she walked away from the balcony.

And she walked away from the view she felt two tiny kicks and she placed a hand over her stomach. The babies were more than active, they were down right fearful. Padme could feel it. She only prayed that Anakin wasn't doing anything foolish. That he was safe.

Realizing that Anakin may not be coming home anytime soon, Padme sat down on the bed before laying down in a comfortable position. Whatever would happen, she had a feeling that it would be soon. Palpatine will make his move very soon.

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Shmi walked into the medical bay with her escort from Padme's guards. Since Anakin had left the apartment, she had fought his orders for her to be brought to Minga but now that Anakin had disappeared, she had given in. Shmi thought that it was odd for Anakin to order her to go to the temple, yet he didn't order his wife who just happened to be pregnant with his children. But then again, Padme Amidala was as stubborn as Anakin and just as able to protect herself. Shmi knew nothing about self defense. Padme knew just as much as Anakin making Shmi wonder what kind of family the Skywalker family had become. But why wouldn't they know how to act in battle, they had enemies, both of them. Shmi shuddered for the two babies that were to be born very soon.

Minga came over to her immediately. "Anakin left me a cryptic message over an hour ago to keep you here," she said and looked past Shmi. "Where's Padme?" she asked.

"She didn't come, She was at her office when I left," Shmi answered remembering Padme telling her that she had a lot of work to do before she could even consider settling down for the night.

Minga looked over at the nabooan guard standing behind Shmi. "You can go now, she will be in excellent hands," she told him.

"As you wish," The guard said before leaving.

Minga took Shmi's hands. "I have a really bad feeling. Usually with these feelings comes a lot of work. Are you prepared to help me?" she asked calmly.

"Did Anakin tell you where he was?" Shmi asked fearfuly.

Minga shook her head. "His message was very short, it has me worried that he's done something without the councils knowledge, especially Master Yoda's and Obi-Wan's," she told her.

"What could it mean?" Shmi asked.

"The only thing that it could mean. The end of this war, whatever the outcome," Minga told her.

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Obi-Wan hated flying. He had grown to hate it after flying with Anakin. But he mostly detested hyperspace more at this moment. He was so sure that Anakin was in trouble. Qui-Gon's warning rang through his ears. Get to Anakin, Get to Anakin. Obi-Wan had to make sure that Anakin wasn't doing something foolish. He just hoped that he would get to Coruscant on time. Gingerly, he felt a little tug in the force. Obi-Wan looked down to see a little switch on the hyperdrive controls that wasn't there before when he had chosen this star fighter. And he remembered Anakin had been tinkering around his starfighter that sat right next to his in the jedi hanger. Anakin had tampered with the hyperdrive in this starfighter, Obi-Wan was sure of it. "I'm sure that I'm going to regret this," he grumbled to himself before flipping the unknown switch. Instantly the hyperdrive blasted on a superior speed flattening Obi-Wan to the seat in the cockpit. "This is why I hate flying!" Obi-Wan shouted.

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Mace had spent the past three hours meditating on Skywalker's words. The more he meditated, the more he found himself believing Skywalker. It was very troubling. Qui-Gon Jinn was right about one thing, Skywalker was the chosen one. After his meditation Mace had come to a decision. He would put the mistrust aside and help Skywalker. He would not let Skywalker fail in his task.

It was with this that Mace heard the screams of the force and looked to find the source to see Skywalker walking briskly into the temple with his cloak pulled up around him. Mace stood impassively as Skywalker walked straight over to him. The other jedi in the temple watched him curiously.

Finally Skywalker stopped in front of Mace and his hand brushed over his lightsaber before he lowered his hood. "It is time," he said. "Prepare a defense around the temple and contact all the jedi abroad, tell them to take cover," Anakin told him.

"What did you do?" Mace demanded.

"What I had to do," Anakin answered and walked past him.

"That does not answer my question," Mace told him tightly coming up beside him.

Anakin looked at Mace briefly. "The plan has been moved into action," he said.

"This mysterious plan of yours will fail unless you tell me what it is," Mace told him.

"I can't tell you what it is," Anakin told him calmly.

"You don't have a choice," Mace told him strictly.

Anakin looked around them at all of the jedi present. "Not here," he said.

Mace held out his hand to the briefing room which was currently empty. "Lets discuss this," he said.

Anakin walked into the briefing room with Mace before Mace shut the door. "The ways of the sith is betrayal. The ultimate act of betrayal is for the apprentice to kill his or her master. So far Sidious has had a total of two apprentices, both killed by jedi. Sidious has yet to know betrayal," he told him.

"I don't follow," Mace said crossing his arms.

"I gave Sidious what he wanted or so he thinks. But once he finds that I have betrayed him, he will order the attack on the jedi if I can't stop him before he does. That is why you must prepare the order," Anakin told him.

Mace narrowed his eyes at him. "You have pledged yourself to the sith then," he demanded.

Anakin smirked. "Not quite. Words are sometimes just that, they often times mean nothing," he told him.

"I do not approve of this," Mace said tightly.

"I have his confession as a sith lord on recording. Everything is prepared for the fall for once the Republic finds out what we are bout to do," Anakin told him.

"And if this plan fails?" Mace demanded.

"It wont," Anakin told him.

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Following Skywalker's plan, Mace informed his fellow Master on the jedi council that Chancellor Palpatine was making his move and that they were moving to arrest him. He made a show of ordering Anakin to stay put in the council chambers, which Anakin protested in show of the other council members. It was then that they boarded a gun ship to leave the temple and arrive at the Senate building.

Once there, Mace noticed the night sky growing darker as if a dark cloud covered Coruscant. An omen of things to come. Mace refused to consider this a sign that things would not turn out as expected. Instead he nodded his head at his fellow jedi, all of whom followed him through the senate halls. But as they walked through the halls and passed windows on the way to the chancellor's office, he spotted a recklessly piloted speeder approaching from the direction of the jedi temple. They finally reached the Chancellor's office and force pushed the red robed guards aside, knowing them out before entering the office.

Chancellor Palpatine turned around in his chair and addressed the jedi masters. "Master Windu. I take it General Grievous has been destroyed then. I must say, you're here sooner than expected," he said.

Mace ignited his lightsaber waiting for Skywalker to arrive as planned. "In the name of the Galactic Senate of the Republic, you are under arrest, Chancellor," he said. The other jedi ignited their lightsabers at his proclamation.

Chancellor Palpatine obviously didn't like what he was hearing. "Are you threatening me, Master Jedi?" he asked dangerously.

Any moment Skywalker would arrive. Mace had to hold his ground until he made his entrance knowing that the fate of the galaxy rested upon this very moment. "The Senate will decide your fate," he said.

Chancellor Palpatine laughed sinisterly. "I am the Senate," he said arrogantly. At that moment something caught Mace's eyes out the window. He made no move to indicate that anything was happening outside this office.

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Anakin pulled the speeder up outside the chancellor's wall sized office window. He summoned his single blade lightsaber and ignited it. He jumped to his feet on the seat of the speeder and made a slashing movement with his lightsaber at the window sending the glass shattering, catching everyone's attention from the room within. He jumped onto the window ledge and walked through the newly made opening. The only sound that was heard was the glass crunching beneath his boot clad feet.

The Chancellor's face instantly changed from a look of rage to a look of relief. A perfect concealment of the dark plans in his head. "Oh Anakin! It has happened just as we predicted, the jedi are taking over," he said in his signature kindly old man voice.

Anakin looked up at the other jedi from under the hood of his cloak and tilted his chin up to them slightly giving them the signal. "Your work here is done, Masters. I will take over from now," he said authoritatively as he stepped further into the room taking off his hood as he did so.

Mace nodded to the other jedi as they exited the room in search of the other minions of Palpatine's. Anakin turned to the Chancellor. "It's over," he said.

"The time to act is now Anakin. The Republic can no longer trust the jedi," Chancellor Palpatine said.

Anakin raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh, is that so?" he said putting away his single bladed lightsaber. "Excuse me if I don't believe your lies," he added pulling out his duel bladed lightsaber. He stood in formation as he ignited both blades one at a time.

Sidious gave him a look of pure rage. "You've betrayed me!" he said outraged.

"I think you have that backwards," Anakin said and moved to strike the sith lord. "I've been a slave once before, I will not become yours," he declared.

"If you will not join me, then you will die, Jedi," Sidious spat. Sidious' crimson lightsaber found it's way into his hands and he charged at Anakin, but Anakin easily blocked his blade knocking him backwards.

"You only have that half right," Anakin said knocking Sidious back again. "I've been training for this moment for two years. I plan to live."

Sidious' face was full of rage and he moved to strike at Anakin's chest showing superb strength for an old man. Anakin turned and blocked his blade with one end of his lightsaber and turning it so that he could knock Sidious' blade out of his hands and clear across the room. He used the middle of the lightsaber to hit the sith lord in the face giving him a bloody nose. Sidious almost lost his balance but righted himself before covering his face with his hands. Anakin took this opportunity to force push the sith lord through the opened door. Sidious looked around him to find that the other jedi had disappeared. He got up and summoned his lightsaber back into his hands just as Anakin came through the door. The senate offices were empty and dark save for the two of them and their ignited lightsabers. Where were the guards? Crimson blade locked with sapphire blades as the dark lord of the sith and the chosen one of the jedi, hero with no fear, whatever you liked to call him, dueled. The rage on the dark lords face was made more sinister with the splattered blood on his face. Anakin betrayed no emotion as he dueled the dark lord. It unnerved the dark lord that Anakin was so deathly calm. This was certainly not the Anakin Skywalker he had come to know.

"The oppression of this sith will never rule the galaxy!" Anakin declared.

"Don't you see Anakin? My plans are to improve the galaxy. I plan to fix everything that is wrong with it now. Make it better," Sidious said calmly.

"I don't believe that for one second," Anakin said as they locked sabers again. By now they had reached the senate chambers.

Sidious sought refuge on the Chancellor's podium and it started to rise. "The jedi have blinded you from seeing the good that the new order will bring if you'll just think for one moment," he said.

"I don't need to think about what plans you have of the future because I'VE BEEN THERE!" Anakin declared jumping up onto the podium locking blades with the dark lord once again.

Sidious' face was full of rage once again as he shoved Anakin off of the podium. Anakin anticipated it and flipped up onto one of the senate pods, lightsaber still in hand. It wasn't supposed to be this way. Anakin was supposed to be Sidious' apprentice! "So sure you are of what you've seen then. You will pay for your lack of vision!" he yelled. Quick as a flash he pulled out a comlink and spoke into it. "Execute order sixty six!" he ordered.

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Baxter ran through the jedi temple and into the hanger. He as well as every jedi in the temple had heard the order being made. It was happening just as Anakin had said it would. Baxter would always be amazed at how Anakin knew of the things that were to come. Now was the time to fight for the order. Thousands of ships were coming to the temple, ready to destroy them. The clones were turning on them. But with Anakin gone somewhere else, the force only knew, Baxter was the one jedi on Coruscant who ranked second only to Anakin who could pilot a ship.

Upon reaching his green jedi starfighter, Baxter jumped into the cockpit and prepared to take off. Around him other jedi and senior padawans jumped into their own respective cockpits while other padawans were ordered to stay with the younglings and crèchelings in the heart of the temple. Only senior jedi and padawans were to fight in this battle. "Master, it seems as though Anakin was right," Baxter said into his comlink.

"It seems that way, Padawan," Lexus Jhon replied as they took off.

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MYGEETO-DAWN

The sky slowly awakened on the crystal world of Mygeeto. A battle raged. Clone troops battled the droid armies across a long bridge. Ki-Adi-Mundi used his lightsaber to deflect enemy fire. He sensed the screaming in the force just as clone commander Bacara exited a gunship near the entrance to the city. The clone rallied his troops to attack the city, then got a message on his comlink. The ever fateful message.

Ki-Adi-Mundi heard the order shorty after the screams. Before he could defend himself the clones turned on him. But before they could strike the Republican Army that Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi built fired down on the clones killing them instantly. Ki-Adi-Mundi nodded to the army officials. "Good job, now lets win this battle!" he said.

FELUCIA-FOREST-DAY

A column of clone walkers marched across the forest floor. The strange calls of the alien forest creatures of Felucia suddenly stopped. Aayla Secura and her clone troops braced for an ambush.

"Steady. . . . steady . . ." Aayla breathed.

They all look around for signs of the enemy. Clone commander Bly moved up behind the Jedi.

"Bly, do you think they're droids?" Aayla asked.

"No," Bly answered dangerously.

Before By could blast Aayla in the back, she turned around and cut him in two. Before the other clones troops could do anything, Aayla got help destroying them from the Republican Army officials.

KASHYYYK-MEETING HALL-DAY

Master Yoda's ears perked up as he heard the scream in the force. The scream that belonged to Anakin Skywalker. It was a warning to all of the jedi. It was happening. Order sixty six was happening now. Master Yoda was sure that Skywalker was projecting this warning to all of the jedi, he only prayed that they would heed it. Suddenly his danger senses alerted him to something close by. In one swift move he reached for his lightsaber and flipped up decapitating the clones behind him.

KASHYYYK-EDGE OF VILIAGE-DAY

The battle appeared to be over. Wookiees destroyed droids while clones assessed the damage to their equipment. A Jedi, Luminara Unduli, talked with eight clone officers standing in a circle around her. Suddenly they revealed their hidden pistols and blast her before she can react. She didn't hear the screams in the force warning her.

The Jedi Quinlan Vos was riding on top of a clone turbo tank. The main cannon of a second tank slowly swung to point right at him and a couple of clones. The cannon fired, and Quinlan force jumped out of the way upon hearing the screams in the force just as the tank he was on blew up.

CATO XEIMOIDIA-JEDI STARFIGHTER-DAY

Plo Koon headed his ship toward a battle on a landing platform. "There they are. Land on the nearest platform," he ordered.

He heard the screams in the force and instantly swerved out of the way when the clones following him tried to blast him dead. From behind the clones the Republican Army blasted the clones away.

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A sudden boom in the distance jolted Padme up from her bed. She looked around to find that she was still alone. Fearfully she walked over to the balcony and watched in horror as the jedi temple was attacked. She recognized the fighters attacking the temple as clone fighters as well as the jedi star fighters defending the temple. A second boom erupted in the night and Padme tore her eyes away from the temple to see the clone headquarters blow up. She snapped her attention back to the temple and placed her hand protectively over her stomach and prayed to the spirits that Anakin was okay. That he would make it out of this okay.

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Baxter fired at the twentieth clone fighter killing the clone inside. If Anakin were here they would be keeping score. The winner would be payed in full. Nonetheless, he smirked as another clone fighter came in range. "Come one baby, I have you now," he said dangerously and blasted the clone out of the sky. "All too easy," he complained. "Master, how many have you got?" he asked into his comlink.

"Not as many as you, Padawan," Lexus replied.

"Where are you?" Baxter asked.

"Clear on the other side of the temple," Lexus told him.

Baxter chanced a glance in his master's direction. "I see you," he said. "There sure is a lot of them," he commented blasting away at another fighter.

"Thankfully your friend's army took care of the rest of them. The reports say that they were marching out of headquarters when the building blew up," Lexus told him.

"That's Skywalker for you," Baxter stated grinning. "He's thought of everything," he said swerving to the side after a fighter. "Although it would be nice if he showed up and helped out, we're being picked off bit by bit!" he said noting the shrinking amount of jedi starfighters as they blew up in the dog fight.

"Don't fret, Padawan, the force will aid us, you must trust in it," Lexus reminded him.

"I also trust my instincts!" Baxter told him pulling a spiral move hitting four clone fighters at once and blowing them up. He chanced another look in his masters direction to see clone fighters surround him. "Master watch out!" he called but his warning came too late as he watched his master's fighter blow up. He couldn't believe his eyes. "Master!" he called out but got no response. "Master!"

His danger senses alerted him to high danger but before he could react his fighter rocked violently as though he had been hit. "Sithspit!" he cursed snapping himself out of his distraught state and tried violently to regain control of his ship but his starfighter continued to rock violently. His artoo unit screamed at him. "I know I know!" he shouted at the droid before his engine caught fire. "I am not going out this way!" he snapped fighting for control of his ship as it plummeted down to the roof of the temple. Another blast fired at him in the front and Baxter threw his arm up over his face as he crashed head on and the glass in his canopy shattered.

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A moment of panic filled Anakin upon hearing the order given. No! He failed to stop order sixty six. But then he remembered that the jedi were alerted to it already and the new army. Using the force he hurtled a senate pot at Palpatine who dodged it with ease. Anakin closed his eye s briefly summoning the force to scream a warning to the jedi through it.

Sidious used a senate pod from above Anakin to fall on top of him but Anakin quickly jumped into another pod just as the two pods crashed into each other. "If you kill me now then any chance for you to save Padme dies with me," Sidious goaded.

"Wrong! If I join you she will die!" Anakin snapped hurtling another senate pod at the dark lord who quickly jumped out of the way. Anakin was getting tired of the sith lord's sorry attempt at trying to turn him. He was getting tired of the dark lord period. In one quick move he hurtled another pod at the dark lord at the same time that he jumped across the room landing in front of the dark lord who had jumped out of the way to avoid getting squashed.

"This is the end for you Lord Sidious. Your reign is over before it even begins," Anakin said moving to strike the sith lord down. But Sidious blocked him and force pushed him away sending force lightning at him as well. Anakin landed on his back in the center of one pod with his lightsaber at his side.

"The senate will never stand for a jedi to murder their Chancellor. Every surviving jedi will be made an enemy of the Republic," Sidious said looming over him.

Anakin laughed as he stared up at the sith lord. "The senate is well aware of your treachery my lord. Your power is null in void. I've made sure of this," he said.

Enraged, Sidious plunged his blade upon Anakin who quickly deflected it shoving the sith lord back. "Why do you think that I didn't kill you two years ago when I returned?! You had too much power then. But within the last two years Your power has been weakening within the senate. Surely you've sensed it. And who do you think planted the seed?" Anakin said.

"Your precious wife and that spawn she is carrying will die for her treachery as soon as I am done with you!" Sidious yelled raging. He moved to plunge his crimson blade through Anakin's chest but Anakin was quicker. Palpatine looked down to see Anakin's sapphire blade, piercing his heart. His grip on his lightsaber loosed until the crimson blade turned off still in Anakin's chest. His last thoughts were those of satisfaction that he would be taking Anakin with him.

"And what a short reign it is," Anakin said finally as the sith lord breathed his last breath.

The now lifeless body of Palpatine fell on top of Anakin when he deactivated his lightsaber. Disgusted, Anakin used what strength he had left and shoved the lifeless body away from him and out of the pod to the bottom of the chambers. The pain in his chest from where Sidious' blade plunged into it came at him hard taking over him making him loose what awareness he had left. His last thoughts went to his family knowing that they were safe before he lost consciousness.

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Mace heard the screams that Anakin had sent through the force. Instantly he felt that something had gone wrong. He looked off in the direction to the senate arena which was where the force screams were coming from as he and Kit Fisto interrogated Mass Amedda.

"You hear it too," Kit Fisto deducted.

"Stay here," Mace ordered.

"You jedi will pay for this, the chancellor will see to it!" Mas Amedda shouted.

Mace ignore him and he rushed from the room and followed the screams until they grew dim. He would not let Skywalker fail. A dozen memories flashed through Mace's mind. He remembered when Qui-Gon Jinn had brought Skywalker to the temple. The boy looked around at them all bravely but Mace could sense the fear and anger in the child that grew up as a slave. He sensed the danger surrounding the child. And as the child grew up, the fear disappeared but the anger had remained. Mace remembered watching the boy train, how much effort he put in his training. The aggression that he felt was put in his fighting style. But the boy continued to build droids and fix things. Mace remembered the countless pranks that Skywalker had pulled. He remembered how many times Skywalker would "kidnap" the younglings and play with them. But most importantly he remembered Skywalker's last words.

"I admired you, Master. I admired your skill with the lightsaber but most importantly I admired your wisdom and how you were always able to keep yourself at peace. I often times considered asking you for advise. But every time I worked up enough courage, I would feel the mistrust and I would loose confidence."

Mace broke into a run into the senate arena to find several pods crashed into each other, some very badly damaged. But what caught his attention was the body that dropped to the floor of the arena. Mace rushed over to it finding it to be the dead body of Chancellor Palpatine. Killed by a lightsaber through his heart. Mace looked up from where the body had dropped but didn't see Skywalker. "Skywalker!" he called but he didn't get an answer. Something in the force told him that something was terribly wrong. "So help me," he muttered force jumping from pod to pod, searching for Skywalker. About one hundred pods up, the force tugged at him and he began searching pod after pod until he found Skywalker laying down in a pod, not moving, with a lightsaber wound in his chest.

Mace rushed over to him and quickly searched for a pulse finding a very weak one. He immediately reached for his comlink. "I need a medical capsule immediately!" he called into it.

"What happened?" Agen Kolar asked.

"Skywalker is down! If we don't get that medical capsule soon, he may not make it!" Mace told him.

"I'll get on it right away!" Agen replied.

Mace put away his comlink and focused on the force before pressing his hand against Skywalker's forehead. Something told Mace that Skywalker was planning to sacrifice himself to save the galaxy. And he did.

"I admired you, Master. I admired your skill with the lightsaber but most importantly I admired your wisdom and how you were always able to keep yourself at peace. I often times considered asking you for advise. But every time I worked up enough courage, I would feel the mistrust and I would loose confidence."

"You have earned my trust, Skywalker. By the force you have earned it," Mace breathed.