Chapter 42
Obi-Wan set off. Anakin was already asleep on the single bunk. Ahsoka came and sat down in the co-pilot seat with a grim expression. He could tell she was tense but in fairness so was he. What they had just witnessed was both awe inspiring and terrifying. The knowledge that Anakin had actually changed the very nature of two of the most powerful beings in the galaxy made his head spin. Oh he wasn't afraid of Anakin. He was afraid for Anakin.
"So, I mean, what was that?" Ahsoka asked nervously.
"Well, I'm not one hundred percent sure to be honest." Obi-Wan told her. "You know about the prophecy of the Chosen One obviously." Ahsoka nodded. "It says that the Chosen One will bring balance to the Force. For a very long time, Anakin has struggled deeply with what it means to bring true balance. Just destroying the Sith doesn't seem to fit because that just swings the balance towards the light. I think he was hoping that if he could keep the balance there without choosing a side, he can do it for the Force as a whole."
"I was watching and he forced their very signatures to change."
"Indeed. As the Father said, he could only do that because that place was so very strong in the Force. I very much doubt that he could do that to, say, you or I now that we are no longer there." Obi-Wan told her. Though, he was actually not so sure about that. He had checked Anakin's Force signature and despite the fact that they had left Mortis, it was still much larger and brighter than it had been before. "The thing is, from what I could make out, the Son and the Daughter were the living embodiment of the Light and Dark Side of the Force. By forcing them to mix he made them the embodiment of Balance, like the Father. However regular Force users, like Jedi, are not solely one or the other despite what they may think or wish. Our Force signatures are simply a reflection of our personality. I believe that as a general rule the darker the signature the more likely they are to use the Dark Side but not always. Nobody has ever really studied it." Obi-Wan said with a helpless shrug.
"Yeah, I hadn't thought about it much until now. I thought a Force signature was just a way of identifying Force users. Like a physical fingerprint." Ahsoka admitted.
"That is what most Jedi assume it is. It seems there might be a whole lot more to it than we first thought."
"So you know we aren't solely Light Side beings because our signatures aren't white like the Daughter's was?" She asked.
"That is my guess. Besides, if we were solely one or the other, Jedi wouldn't be able to fall. The Daughter was completely unable to use the Dark Side, or that's what it seemed."
"This is so complicated." Ahsoka groaned.
"The Force is a very complex thing." Obi-Wan agreed. "I think we should not mention this when we get back to Coruscant. I will speak with Master Windu but if everybody found out what Anakin did...well, it probably wouldn't be good." Ahsoka nodded her agreement. They flew in silence for a few more minutes and then without warning, blackness took him.
"Sir?" Obi-Wan opened his eyes and blinked. That was Rex's voice.
"Rex?" He asked.
"Ah, General Kenobi. Where is General Skywalker? You dropped off the scopes for a moment."
"A moment? We were gone longer than that. Anakin is sleeping." He said. Beside him Ahsoka woke up and jolted upright.
"No you weren't, Sir. We spoke a few moments ago." Rex sounded confused.
"Never mind then." Obi-Wan said. It wasn't the weirdest thing that had happened today. Not even close. He landed the ship in the cruiser's hangar. "I'm going to take Anakin to the quarters. Get yourself some rest." He told Ahsoka. Then, he picked up Anakin and carried him to their quarters. He settled him down in the bed and climbed in next to him. Sleep took him again in a second. When he woke up, Anakin was already awake.
"Hey." Anakin gave him a weary smile.
"Hey. How are you feeling?" Obi-Wan asked, feeling quite awake instantly. Anakin frowned.
"Strange. Powerful. Nothing compared to when we were on that planet but I definitely feel more powerful than before. And...I can see your Force signature without even trying. I can still see you, but there is a bluish glow around you."
"I guess when you handled all the power you must have absorbed some for yourself." Obi-Wan guessed. "Most of what happened there is beyond my knowledge of the Force."
"Do you think it will fade?"
"Maybe. Maybe not." He checked the time. "We've been asleep almost twelve hours. If it was going to fade it would probably have done so by now. But that's just a guess." Anakin filled him in on everything that had happened on Mortis, from his point of view.
"Do I seem any more powerful to you?" Anakin asked anxiously. Obi-Wan paused to actually look at Anakin. Physically he looked no different but his Force signature was definitely still bigger and brighter. He mentioned this to Anakin. "That's what I thought." He sighed.
"What's the matter?"
"Well, the Jedi already think I'm too powerful. They are going to like this even less. Not to mention all the Sith Lords trying to recruit me. If he wanted me before, Palpatine is likely to try even harder if he knows I became more powerful. And that I did...what I did." Anakin pointed out. Obi-Wan winced. Yes. That would be a problem. He considered for a little while.
"You said that while we were there, you managed to block some of your connection to the Force. Do you think you could do that now?"
"I can try." Anakin shrugged. They both sat themself up and sat facing each other on the bunk. Obi-Wan watched Anakin's Force signature. Nothing seemed to happen but after a few moments it shrank a little.
"It's getting smaller." Obi-Wan told him. "Still bigger than yours was." He was very thankful he had spent so much time with Anakin that he knew exactly the size, colour and shape of his Force signature. It took quite a while for Anakin to shrink his signature down to the size it had been before. It was still marginally brighter but he didn't seem able to change that. Obi-Wan assured him it wasn't very noticeable.
"That was hard. Blocking the connection is easy enough if I concentrate but getting it to the right size? That's definitely hard and requires a lot of concentration." Anakin told him.
"So not a practical long term solution then." Obi-Wan sighed. "For now the biggest problem is hiding it from Palpatine. It would be preferable if the Jedi didn't know but it's the lesser of our problems. If you can manage to shield yourself while in Palpatine's presence then that's something." Obi-Wan said. Anakin nodded, still looking anxious. "Practise should help. We'll stay here for the trip and I will help you."
They spent the rest of the trip trying to find ways to hide Anakn's signature. They started with meditation and tried asking Qui-Gon for help. When they asked him for help, it did seem a little easier. Anakin said that it felt like some of his power was blocked. LIke it was there but he couldn't access it. Obi-Wan looked and saw that his Force signature was indeed smaller but it still required Anakin to block more of the connection. By the time they arrived back at Coruscant, Anakin seemed to have a handle on it. It still wasn't a long term solution but it would do for now. Obi-Wan suspected that the Council wouldn't notice, at least not immediately. Anakin told him that he wasn't glowing anymore which was a good sign.
They emerged from their quarters to find Ahsoka. She was on the bridge with Rex. Both of them were pleased to see Anakin and Obi-Wan finally awake. The three Jedi made their way back to the Temple to give their, heavily edited, report. The Council were mostly surprised to hear of the existence of the family. Only Yoda didn't seem too shocked but he said nothing. They did decide that they didn't seem to be a threat and so they had bigger problems right then.
Once the meeting was over, Obi-Wan and Anakin met with Windu. They explained the full situation to him and what had truly happened on Mortis. Anakin quietly explained about his new found power and even closer connection to the Force. It was clear he expected a negative reaction from Windu. However the Jedi Master just studied him for a few moments.
"I agree with Obi-Wan that you should continue to hide your powers for your own safety." He said slowly. "However I am more curious about your discovery on Mortis and how you managed to change the very nature of two beings. This will require some study. It shows us how much we still have to learn about the Force."
"I believe that to have true balance, we must embrace all of the Force. Every aspect." Anakin said. Windu frowned so he quickly continued. "Embracing and accepting every aspect does not necessarily mean using it. The Force itself is not light or dark, it just is. I mean, your combat style, Vaapad, comes with a warning about being dangerously close to the Dark side. But you understand that, accept it and still do not fall. You feel passion but you control it and use it." Windu considered him thoughtfully.
"You have grown, Skywalker." He said. Obi-Wan almost bit back a chuckle at the indignation that ran through Anakin at that comment. He knew Windu had not meant it in an insulting fashion. "Maybe you have a point, though many Jedi would disagree with you. I believe that I should begin teaching you the Vaapad style of fighting. In the past I would never have considered it given that you were ruled by your emotions. Now, I believe you to be ready and that it would suit you." Obi-Wan was taken aback by the offer. So too, was Anakin.
"I would be honoured, Master." Anakin replied, inclining his head.
"For now, I shall meditate on what you have told me." The trio went their own ways. Anakin told Obi-Wan he was heading to the undercity to do some jobs. Obi-Wan decided to head to the archives to do some research.
His research was not particularly productive. Much of the Jedi's earliest teachings had been lost in the wars with the Sith. He found mentions of the Living Force which Qui-Gon had often spoken about, how he wished he had listened more, and the Cosmic Force.
After a lot of digging he did find mention of Mortis. Some legends believed it is where the Force originated. Which would explain why the living embodiments of the various aspects of the Force lived there. It would also explain why events within the Force that occured on Mortis, would ripple through the Force in the rest of the universe. It did not explain how the beings that were quite possibly made of nothing but the Force could possibly be controlled by a Force sensitive human. No matter how powerful he was. There must be something else. Unless...Anakin had been created without a father. Was it possible the Force had created him, as it had the beings on Mortis? Had his destiny been to replace the Father permanently as the new Balance? If that were the case then Anakin had found a completely different way to fulfil his destiny. How very Anakin. Although instead of controlling the Light and Dark sides of the Force, he had erased them completely. Well, Obi-Wan mused, Anakin always did have to do things as dramatically as possible. It may also mean that he had technically already fulfilled the prophecy. He wondered if it made a difference that Anakin had fulfilled the prophecy by himself this time. The last time around the Dark had killed the Light before Anakin killed the Dark. This time he alone had used the Force to change them both to make Balance.
Obi-Wan sat back and took a deep breath. All of these theories and possibilities were making his head spin again. Checking the time he realised he had been there for hours. Slowly, he got up and stretched. He was stiff from sitting so long and it made him feel decidedly old. Yawning loudly, he made his way out of the archives and back to the apartment. Anakin was waiting for him on the couch.
"Where the Force have you been?" Anakin asked, handing him a plate of bantha burgers and fries as he collapsed on the couch.
"Ah, food. I love you." Obi-Wan replied, digging in eagerly. It took a few mouthfuls before he realised Anakin had asked a question.
"And you tell me I eat too fast." Anakin chuckled.
"I was in the archives." Obi-Wan told him. Eating the rest of his meal at a slower pace, he filled Anakin in on his findings. Which amounted to not very much, just a few more theories they had no way of answering. When he was done eating, he leaned against Anakin and yawned once more.
"Maybe we should head to bed before you fall asleep here." Anakin suggested with a quiet laugh. Obi-Wan nodded. It was a good plan. The problem was it involved moving again and he wasn't really sure he had the energy for that. Instead he simply groaned. "Come on, old man." Anakin teased, grabbing his hand and pulling him up.
"Urgh!" He groaned once more. "Fine, fine. I'm coming." Obi-Wan made his way to the fresher to clean himself up before clambering into the bed. He vaguely felt Anakin climbing into next to him but the darkness was already taking him.
They spent four days on Coruscant. Anakin began lessons with Windu which seemed to go very well. They style certainly did suit him and he took to it naturally. Obi-Wan watched one of the lessons but decided to skip the other in an attempt to get more research done. His searches continued to be fruitless. It was possible the answer lay in an old Jedi Temple on another planet. There were certainly enough of them.
On the fifth day since their return, news reached them that Master Even Piell had been captured. Obi-wan recalled this trip with little enthusiasm. Thankfully his memory of the defensive systems was quite vivid. A little reluctantly he decided to go along with Anakin's plan of being frozen to avoid the life form scanner. Anakin was quite happy to reprogram some battle droids. They did scavenge more than three this time. Artoo was far too happy to be put in charge of seven battle droids. Obi-Wan may not have been fluent in droid speak but there was no missing the smugness in his beeps. They decided to bring Ahsoka along this time. Anakin had objected but Obi-Wan pointed out that it was safer if she was briefed than snuck along and didn't know the plan. Anakin had spent the next ten minutes sulking but had grudgingly allowed Ahsoka to join them.
Plo Koon would see them off. Obi-Wan was still unhappy about being frozen. He might hate flying but relying on droids to do it, Separatists ones at that, set him on edge. On reflection, it was probably a good thing he was going to be frozen. That way he wouldn't be nervous.
They arrived with seemingly no issues. Anakin told Artoo to wait with the ship. As before, the wind was terrible and climbing was going to be difficult.
"Anakin, do you think you could create a bubble of air where the wind cannot reach us?" Obi-Wan asked. He had seen Plo Koon manipulate the weather on a couple of occasions and knew it could be done. Anakin frowned a little.
"I can try." He said. Obi-Wan opened his mouth but thought better of it and closed it again. Anakin's brow creased in concentration and after a few moments, the wind around them stilled.
"Nice work." Obi-Wan complimented.
"Alright, Clones, try your jetpacks." Anakin ordered. They exchanged glances before doing so. As they flew up to the entry point, Anakin moved the pocket of air with them, allowing them an easy flight. A bead of sweat ran down his forehead as he focused but they made it up safely. Now it was their turn. However, using the Force, the climb was much easier for the three Jedi. They made it inside easily enough.
"Watch out for cameras." Obi-Wan told the Clones. Instead of blowing up the cameras, they had brought along tech disruptors. They would cause a few seconds of disturbance, enough to sneak past but not enough to arouse too much suspicion. Hopefully. The group made its way down the corridors.
Eventually they arrived outside Master Piell's cell. Anakin forced the door open and they took care of the droids inside with ease. Obi-Wan slashed through the machine binding Piell and gently lowered him to the floor.
"Are you alright?" Anakin asked him.
"What took you so long?" Piell asked. Obi-Wan smirked.
"Sorry, we actually stopped to make a plan." He said
"Why bother? They go to hell anyway." Piell pointed out. This time Anakin chuckled.
"Glad to see your sense of humour is intact."
"Takes more than that to break me, Skywalker." Piell told him. Obi-Wan handed over Piell's lightsaber as he asked if he had the coordinates. Sadly, as before, Tarkin had the other half. Obi-Wan did not trust Tarkin, given what he had heard about him and his service to the Emperor. Obviously many other Captains and Generals had joined the Empire, including Yularen. However, Obi-Wan sensed that, should Palpatine be revealed as an enemy of the Republic, Yularen would remain loyal. Tarkin, and a few others, he was less sure of.
"Then we must rescue the officers." Anakin declared. Piell nodded. They left the room, making sure to close it once more. On the way to the other cell, they encountered a group of patrol droids. Destroying them was easy but the noise created was bound to draw attention.
"We must hurry." Obi-Wan urged them. They made their way into the officer's cell.
"General." Said Tarkin, not sounding as pleased as one would expect considering they were being rescued.
"Captain Tarkin."
"I never thought I would see you again." Tarkin replied. "And you brought friends." There was a disdainful undercurrent to his tone. Obi-Wan saw Anakin scowl at the Tarkin. It was an internal battle to avoid doing the same.
"Captain, this is General Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker." Piell introduced them. Tarkin's eyes narrowed.
"Well, now that you've found us, how do you plan to get us out?" He asked.
"Well, if you put one foot in front of the other and move it's called walking. Do that very quietly and we shall leave by the ship that brought us here." Anakin told him scathingly. Tarkin opened his mouth to respond but Obi-Wan intervened.
"Let's get moving before they wonder why the droids haven't reported in." They met more droids on their way out. As they were about to fight, all of their weapons flew to the ceiling. Obi-Wan cursed. Then he concentrated on the device that was magnetizing the area. Looking through the Force he found the shatterpoint and sent a focused burst of energy at it. Their weapons fell back to the floor. Longshot had already been killed by the droids and Cody was currently being strangled. Summoning his lightsaber, Obi-Wan slashed the head off of the droids.
"Thanks, General." Cody gasped. Obi-Wan inclined his head before destroying another droid. Moving quickly now, not bothering with cameras, the group hurried back to their landing spot. Artoo and the droids were nowhere to be seen.
"That has a trap written all over it." Anakin muttered.
"Indeed." Obi-Wan agreed.
"Do you have a plan at all?" Tarkin asked in exasperation.
"Spring the trap." Obi-Wan smiled. Tarkin blinked in surprise and then glared.
"That sounds like a terrible plan." He told them firmly.
"Feel free to make up another one." Anakin replied shortly. "Now, come on. Ahsoka, see if you can get to the other side and make sure there are no droids waiting."
"Yes, Master." He watched as she bounded off.
"You're sending her, she's just a child?" Tarkin looked horrified.
"If Ahsoka was just a child, she wouldn't be here." Anakin told him in a firm voice. "Now quit complaining, or have you come up with a different plan yet?" Tarkin huffed but said nothing. Piell glanced between the two, a thoughtful expression on his face. They received the all clear signal from Ahsoka and made their way towards the ship. Naturally, that was when everything went wrong.