The Review Guest - While Anakin has had some different influences in his life, he is still Anakin. You will find this Anakin to be a bit more secure in his abilities and place among the Jedi and much more grounded in the Light.

Chapter 59

It was the best place to get a view of the sweeping plains of Dantooine, or at least that was what some older boys had told the five-year-old boy. They had promised him a view of large, magnificent thune and long-necked piket grazing in the distance. Bren'an wasn't so sure about that now. They hadn't told him that the blba trees had so many thorns. Halfway up the tree and deciding that it wasn't worth the trouble, Bren'an began to look for a way down. He slipped, but fortunately, his jacket snagged on some spikes. Scrambling to get a foothold again, the boy was all too aware that the tree hadn't seemed so tall when he first started climbing it. The telltale sound of fabric ripping had him reaching for the nearest branch in panic, gashing his hands on those blasted thorns as his jacket gave way. He tried to slow his fall with the Force, but everything was happening so fast, so he chose to just close his eyes. Suddenly, two strong arms were beneath him. He peeked, his face breaking into a smile at the sight of two concerned eyes looking down at him.

"Daddy!" he beamed.

"You could have gotten hurt," his father said calmly. "Trust me. I know what trouble blba trees can cause."

Obi-Wan sat down in the tall grass, still cradling his son. Bren'an worriedly examined his bleeding hands.

"Let me take a look." Obi-Wan rubbed his thumbs over the boy's palms, channeling healing energy into the deeper cuts. Though his son was still in need of some bacta, he was satisfied that the bleeding had stopped.

"How did you do that?" the boy asked, once again in unceasing awe of the Force.

"My mother taught me how when I was younger," Obi-Wan explained.

"Will you teach me?" Bren'an asked.

"When you are older." Obi-Wan tapped his son on the nose with his finger, earning a scowl. Always eager to learn new things, Bren'an didn't like being reminded that he was still little. "Come, let's go down by the lake."

Obi-Wan lifted his son up onto his shoulders, holding on tightly to the boy's legs as he weaved through the grass. He paused short of the lake, catching sight of three iriaz drinking from the water's edge.

"Look Bren'an," he whispered.

Slowly, he lowered his son down, and father and son crouched low into the grass to watch the gentle, horned creatures.

"Grandpa Qui-Gon got one of them to come to us once," Bren'an whispered. "He said that he used the Force to let them know we weren't going to hurt it."

"Your grandfather has always been very gifted at that," Obi-Wan said fondly.

"Can you do it?"

"I doubt they would believe me. They are very long-lived creatures and some of them probably remember me and Byram from when we were younger."

At the sound of the boy's laughter, heads shot up in the air. The two Jedi could sense the animals' panic through the Force. Obi-Wan reached out to the flustered minds, exuding calm. After a moment, the iriaz resumed drinking.

"Will I be able to do that someday?" Bren'an asked.

"Yes, that and so much more."

Bren'an put one foot in front of the other as he moved toward the warm light he could sense just in the distance. It reminded him of his mom and dad, his grandfathers, and Uncle Anakin. It also reminded him of Dantooine, purple grass and white flowers, and blba trees. He wished he was there right now with Master Yoda and not in a dark and cold tunnel. He was scared, getting further away from his mother, and he was worried about her.

"Hello, Little One. I have been looking for you."

Bren'an took in a deep breath as a tall Twi'lek with blue skin stepped into his path. His attention was immediately drawn to the twin blasters strapped around her slender hips. Not taking his eyes off of her, he began to back up.

"Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you," she said in a gentle voice he didn't think was usual for her. "You're worth too much delivered safely."

Closing the distance between them, she grabbed onto his upper arm.

"Let go!" Bren'an cried out as she started to pull him along. She ignored him, dragging him even as he allowed his legs to fall out from under him.

"You're not going to make this easy, are you?" she hissed in annoyance.

Bren'an concentrated on her mind, reaching out with the Force to touch it. "Let me go," he said with a quick wave of his free hand. She kept moving. "Let me go," he tried again with a different intonation, his lip beginning to quiver when nothing happened. Deciding he didn't know enough about the Force for it to work yet, he gave up and bit her arm. The Twi'lek shrieked and immediately loosened her grip. Using the distraction, he kicked her hard in the knee, eliciting a string of what he figured were very bad words. He couldn't tell because they were in Huttese, though he thought he had heard Uncle Anakin say them before. Bren'an pulled loose and began to run as fast as he could back toward his mother, but his short strides were no match for the lithe, long-legged Twi'lek. She easily caught up to him and roughly jerked his arm.

"Let him go!" The voice came from a side tunnel, speaking with command and authority, and just a bit of anger.

"Dad!" Bren'an cried out.

The Twi'lek twisted the boy around in front of her and placed the muzzle of one of the blasters to his head.

"Don't come any closer, Senator Kenobi," she hissed in warning. "Back away," she snapped at Garen, who was moving in from the side.

"You don't want to harm him," Obi-Wan suggested in a soft voice. A slight wave of his hand accompanied the words.

"I don't want to harm him," the Twi'lek repeated.

Bren'an could sense strong waves of the Force swirling around the Twi'lek. His attempts had barely even touched her mind, but his father's influence was strong and demanded compliance.

"Put the blaster down."

"Put the blaster down," she murmured.

"Now, let him go."

As she repeated the words, the grip on Bren'an's arm slipped. The boy knew better than to jerk away. He slipped away, moving quickly but calmly until he knew he was in his father's reach. Strong arms caught him and held him close.

"Are you okay?" Obi-Wan breathed into his hair.

"Yes, now that you're here," the boy said, wrapping his arms around his father's neck. "Mom is in trouble."

"I know." Obi-Wan turned to Garen. "I will let you deal with her."

Obi-Wan darted down the tunnel, still holding on to Bren'an. They soon heard the voices of Corrar and Siri. "It's me," Obi-Wan called out, not wanting to meet the end of a protective Jedi master's saber.

Quickly depositing Bren'an into Corrar's arms, Obi-Wan reached for his wife and wrapped her in his embrace. "You're injured," he said softly as he breathed in her scent and reveled in the fact that she was alive and warm, and that he was holding her.

"I think I tore something in my shoulder." All too aware of her son's avid and sometimes troublesome curiosity, she whispered, "Xanatos," into her husband's ear.

"Where is my master?" Obi-Wan asked.

"He chased Anakin, who chased …"

That was all Obi-Wan needed to hear. "Garen is back that way," he said. "He'll take you to safety."

"Where do you think you're going?" Siri snapped in irritation.

It was too late. He was long gone.

"The Dark Side clouds everything."

Never had those words been more real to Anakin than at the moment. A heavy shroud of darkness rested over Coruscant, and it had seemed to swallow the Sith whole, without a trace. Trudging on ahead was useless and not really wise, he decided.

"Deceive you your eyes can, Padawan. Reach out with your senses you must. Feel the Force around you."

Anakin closed his eyes, letting go of his conscious mind, welcoming the Force. As he tapped into the ancient energy, a smile curled his lips at the voices of light in the distance, reminding him he wasn't alone in the dark. The Force was always with him. The Light side was there, only shrouded by the Dark side. It flowed through everything and when he stretched out with his senses, the very walls of the tunnels were his eyes, and he could 'see' for miles. Siri holding Bren'an, her father helping the pair toward Garen. Qui-Gon looking for him, Obi-Wan closing in behind. And ahead … a trap. Anakin dropped to his knees just as a crimson blade that would have decapitated him passed overhead. Smiling, he whirled around to meet the Sith's next strike.

"Have to do better than that," he taunted.

"So I see."

The Sith's eyes took on an eerie glow as he studied his opponent. The Darkness surged, choking the Force around Anakin again. He had never sensed it so strong before. It chilled his body and whispered to him. His steps faltered at the distraction, and the Sith kicked him back against the wall. Anakin countered with a fierce attack of rapid downward slashes that drove his foe down the tunnel. Xanatos feigned right then flattened himself against the wall, his blade swiping Anakin's thigh as the young Jedi charged to meet what he thought was an attack. Anakin dropped to the ground, gritting his teeth as he clutched the wound. He quickly scrambled back to his feet, finding it difficult to put weight on the now-injured leg.

"Ready to finish this and die?" Xanatos asked.

"Not even close."

It was the Chosen One's destiny to destroy the Sith. Anakin was determined to not get killed by the first one he faced. His leg burned, and he was aware that he now lacked the strength for the powerful step-through strikes required of the Djem So form he had favored. He had trained in Ataru – his aged, hobbling master used it because it compensated for his advanced years. The form had landed Anakin flat on his back in many spar sessions. Though he disliked it and a closed tunnel was hardly the best place to use it, he needed the compromise. Drawing on the Force, he launched himself forward, his injured leg barely skimming the ground as he attacked. The two foes battered each other, Anakin a constant blur of motion, never giving the Sith a moment to recover between attacks. A smile slipped across his lips as he sensed Qui-Gon approach. Obi-Wan wasn't far behind, and between the three of them, the Sith didn't stand a chance.

But as Qui-Gon came up behind them, Xanatos did something entirely unexpected. Throwing his arm out front, a strong Force push sent Anakin flailing into Qui-Gon, the pair barely having time to disengage their sabers to keep from impaling each other. Anakin struggled to get up, the wind knocked out of him. He began to run until he heard the whine of a speeder back fleeing from the end of the tunnel.

The Sith had slipped through his fingers.

He slid down the tunnel wall, not caring that he was now sitting in something cold and wet. His body ached all over as fleeting adrenalin left him aware of everywhere the Sith's boot had made contact. Obi-Wan approached and squatted down in front of him.

"He got away," Anakin forced between clenched teeth.

"And I am thankful that my very foolish, very young friend is alive."

Anakin hurt too much to think of a fitting comeback and settled for something that sounded like a growl, but came out as a whimper. "Siri and Bren'an?"

"Safe."

"Good," Anakin said softly. He smiled briefly before biting down on his lip as Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon lifted him to his feet and began to help him back toward a waiting speeder.