He had warned Master Windu that Palpatine was evil. Anakin didn't know how he missed such an obvious evil, a Sith Lord for so long. How did the Jedi council miss this? The thoughts ran through his head, in a never ending loop, it angered him just how arrogant, how ignorant the Jedi were. How dare they have the right to lecture him on his abilities as a Jedi knight when they allowed evil to fester in the senate, in the order itself. He stared at the sunset over the horizon of Coruscant, his mind was crowded with thoughts, and Anakin shifted his weight on his feet and placed his hand on the glass. He could feel the billions of lives pulsing outside, he inhaled feeling the force pulsate around him. He could help but be reminded that this was the room where the Jedi judged, criticized and ignored him.
See through you, we can. You are on this Council, but we do not grant you the rank of Master. What? ! How can you do this? This is outrageous, it's unfair . . .
I'm more powerful than any of you. How can you be on the Council and not be a Master? Fear is the path to the dark side... fear leads to anger... anger leads to hate.. hate leads to suffering.
Anakin cleared his mind of the ghosts of the past. All he could do was think of was Padmé, his dreams plagued him nightly. Each night the visions became clearer, and more and more sidious. The dreams were eerily similar to the ones that plagued him about his mother. He could never see much, just her face in great pain and a sense that she was dying. A familiar voice entered his head,
You do know, don't you, if the Jedi destroy me, any chance of saving her will be lost.
White hot blinding rage entered Anakin's heart, he looked at his cybernetic hand. Which he knew he shouldn't be able to feel, but for the past day all he could feel was a blinding pain where his hand used to be. The pain was a never ending reminder of the pain stored away in his heart that only grew each day after the death of his mother.
Anakin felt tears well up in his eyes, blurring his view of the vastness outside, and the sun setting, he made a fist making a silent pact to himself to ensure no harm ever came to those he loved ever again, he could sense Padmé with him somehow, a soothing voice entered his mind.
I truly, deeply love you. Before I die. I want you to know.
No decided Anakin, he shook his head, as a teardrop fell from his face. That was it, he decided, he could no longer ignore it, he couldn't let Padmé die. Whatever it took, it must be done. He turned around and left the Jedi Council chambers, and didn't care he if never saw it again.
"I can't do this ... I can't let her die." he said to himself right before he entered into his ship. "Chancellor Palpatine's office R2". R2 beeped in acknowledgement.
Anakin ran towards the sounds of a crash, was it too late? Every step felt as if he was wearing Mandolorian Iron weights on his legs, every moment agonizing. Entering the office, it's a horrifying spectacle; three Jedi Masters slain by his feet, and came upon Palpatine cowering on the ledge of his window, and Mace Windu upon him ready to strike.
"You are under arrest, Sith!" The words come from Mace, Anakin isn't shocked he is the one who turned the now cowering dark lord on his own window ledge where not less than an hour ago he attempted to offer him anything his heart desired. There was only thing his heart desired, and right now his only way to save her was perilously on the edge.
Palpatine turned to face Anakin, his eye's wide in fear, his face even paler than usual, "Anakin! I told you it would come to this. I was right. The Jedi are taking over."
Anakin frantically shifted his gaze from Mace Windu to Palpatine. His soul was torn, Palpatine was, as he learned was the very Sith he and the Jedi had been looking for since he was a child. This Sith who, it felt was like his father, guiding him, giving him advice, he was there for the small boy from the Outer Rim when no one else was. To find out that your father was evil, pure unadulterated evil, was one thing. But what made the situation unfolding in front of him was that this evil presence was his only hope to save his wife. Seeing Palpatine plead for his life made Anakin skeptical, he was angry at the Jedi, for many reasons, he knew even Obi-Wan had his reservations about the direction of the Order, but was he ready to believe that the Jedi were taking over? Mace Windu sounded more authoritative than usual, manic even,"You old fool. The oppression of the Sith will never return. Your plot to regain control of the Republic is over . . . you have lost . . ."
If he could just arrest Palpatine, talk Mace Windu into trusting the courts, or the senate. Mace would have to agree to using democracy, law and order to their advantage, he could use him, to save Padmé. Before he had time to decide how to talk Mace into his idea he noticed an odd glance in Palatine's gaze, there was something inhuman in it, why had he not seen it before? "No!, NOOO you will die!". Palpatine sent out lightning out from his hands towards Mace, but Mace deflected it back towards Palpatine. Almost immediately Anakin saw his mentor age, and his face warp, it was if his human face was the mask and this was his true face, a sith face. The face he had grown up with, the warmth and personality this animal showed him was a lie.
"He is a traitor, Anakin."Palpatine said weakly, Mace Windu turned his face to Anakin, sweat dripping down his face and his arms visibly shaking, tired from battling a sith lord. "No Anakin, Palpatine is the traitor here. Help me"
A decrepit voice entered Anakin's mind, like a snake wrapping around his mind, caressing and stroking his desires.
Only through me can you achieve a power greater than any Jedi. Learn to know the dark side of the Force, Anakin, and you will be able to save your wife from certain death. Let me help you to know the subtleties of the Force.
Palpatine crawled further onto the ledge of the window, his lips warbling," I have the power to save the one you love." Palpatine had nowhere else to go, reacting like a trapped animal, and Mace Windu advanced upon him further "Help me! Don't let him kill me. I can't hold on any longer" Palpatine seemed enunciate every syllable. Anakin frantically pleads, "He must stand trial!". Mace Windu is exhausted, he cannot keep up this battle any longer, he's seen too much in the months that Anakin and Obi-Wan have been chasing Separatists around the Outer Rim, he knows that the man before him is no mere mortal. As he told him only moments ago, he IS the senate, no court could hope to be fair. Mace Windu, tiredly shouted "He has too much control of the Senate and the Courts. He is too dangerous to be kept alive." He was right, of course. History would probably not look to kindly to a quasi-judicial religious order executing a politician for being the mythological devil of old, but here and now for the good of democracy it was something that needed to be done.
Anakin looked towards his long time mentor and a long look at Mace Windu.
Master Windu and he had never been close, not like he was with Obi-Wan. He was often at odds with Anakin, questioning his abilities as a Jedi, questioning his abilities as a general, questioning his destiny. After his tactless response to his former Padawan's trial, he had thought things that were far from acceptable for a Jedi. Anakin swore that he would never forgive the Order, and never forgive Mace Windu after attempting to talk his way out his behaviour by bestowing her with passing her great trial. It wasn't the only thing that he noticed with the Jedi council, but it was one that stung the worst. He trusted him as Jedi, but as a friend, he did not.
Shaking his head slightly, Anakin spoke up, "It's not the Jedi way, to kill an unarmed man in battle." Anakin felt hypocritical shouting the statement, but if he were to be the Jedi he wanted to be, and save Padme, it was the truth. Mace Windu looked so utterly annoyed with Anakin at this moment, so exhausted that his usual Jedi stoicism faded away, Palpatine tried a final time, " I'm too weak. Don't kill me. Please. Please don't." Anakin couldn't bear this any longer and decided he had to put an end to this. He needed Palpatine, he needed Padmé. He couldn't ask for aid from anyone else, no one else would understand. His mentor looked so frail, this was the only way he kept assuring himself. He would make everyone understand.
"NO!" A scream emanated from Anakin and rushes towards the two battling warriors. Mace Windu is about to slash into Palpatine, rushing to intercept, Anakin stops Windu's saber from cutting into Palpatine, he is about to deflect. Something tells Anakin to slow down, not enough to notice from the naked eye, but to a Jedi, it's enough to think for a moment. He decides to turn to his left and looks into Windu's eyes. Looking into the glittering iris of Mace's chestnut eyes, staring back at him, it's here he sees the reflection of Palpatine, here there was doubt. He never saw it before, but he truly sees an incredibly powerful Sith lord who had been playing Anakin for years, even now. Palpatine didn't think that he could see him in the reflection, but Anakin caught a grin.
He thought he had won, Anakin's thoughts erupted in his mind, Dooku was right. The senate was in thrall to a powerful Sith Lord and we were all his puppets.
Anakin returned from his thoughts. "Help me Anakin, I'm so weak" Anakin still wanted this man to face trial, but Windu was expediting this process much faster than expected. Anakin closed his eyes quickly and thought of Padmé, her love. Just this once, he turned left and made his decision. He raised his lightsaber, and in an instance and stabbed into Chancellor Palpatine.
I'm sorry my love, I have doomed you to death
Palpatine's face was similar to Dooku's when he executed him, one of shock, and a final realization of the truth, he did not even have a moment to scream, Anakin made sure of that. Angrily Anakin raised his lightsaber again, and dismembered his head from his frail body, causing what was left of his body to tumble outside towards the endless bottom of Coruscant. Anakin fell to his knees, crying out "What have I done, Oh what have I done!" But it was done, there was no going back from this moment, Anakin thought. A moment of panic overtook Anakin, gripping the red fibers of the carpet, but quickly he raced to regain his composure and looked up to Mace Windu. Mace Windu moved from the window, and put his hand on Anakin's shoulder. He said nothing, visibly exhausted. Anakin stood up and sat at Palpatine's desk, and picked up one of Palpatine's lightsaber. He rolled the handle around in his palm, it was beautifully engraved, it looked like an antique. "How did we miss this?" Anakin asked, his eyes were still red and visibly distraught, "This is on all of us" Windu replied.
Mace Windu sat down on the office couch, his whole body shivering as the adrenaline of the fight was wearing off, "The whole council should know of this." Anakin nodded, "I agree, most of the council is still off planet. Seems the war...is over." Anakin continued to handle Palpatine's lightsaber, his mind already elsewhere, "Master, I need rest. Please alert me when Obi-Wan returns."
Windu nodded his head. "Anakin..." Anakin stopped to look at Windu, "You have done this council proud. I would be glad to see you become Master." Anakin was too distraught to feel much of anything. He nodded, it needed to decompress everything. He feared he had just doomed himself, and his only love in the galaxy, all for the Order. Everything was so uncertain. Anakin stepped into his ship, R2 chirped and on his ship display
I was worried, are you okay Maker Anakin?
"Yes R2, everything will be okay now"
That is good news, what coordinates should I enter now?
He could always depend on droids, "Let's go home." R2 beeped in acknowledgement, he was glad to go home too.