Coruscant, Lower Levels, 32 BBY

He knew that he should probably feel the pangs of fear in his heart. This was no place for a child, especially one dressed as richly as he was and was without a bodyguard. He knew it, his master knew it as well but yet here he was, walking down the dark streets of Coruscant's Lower Levels. Anakin Skywalker looked upwards, pushing the brim of his tunic's hood slightly backwards to get a clearer view of where the sky should be. His eyes found only Durasteel and Ferroconcrete in place of clouds, Neon Signs and flickering holograms in place of the Sun's rays. When he came here for the first time, he thought the city-planet would be a paradise of wealth and prosperity, full of happy, smiling humans and aliens. I was so naïve. I didn't know that the Galaxy was almost full of smaller Tatooines, only missing the sand.

His Master's teachings as well as his work in Coruscant's Apprentice Legislature made him realize the folly of his youthful outlook. The Galaxy was a cesspool, a disorganized patchwork of disparate voices yearning to put down and steered in a new direction. Only when the Sith rule the Galaxy, shall we have peace, he thought, mirroring the words of Darth Sidious during one of their long sessions. His Master's vision for the Galaxy appealed to Anakin yet he couldn't help but notice a small contradiction to his other teachings. How can we achieve peace, if peace is a lie? Perhaps he would know the answer when he was wiser.

A holographic Twi'lek danced over the words Chel's Bar. It was similar to a million other such establishments but this one was special. It was a front for the Black Suns, a powerful criminal cartel according to his research. Del Perhi, the representative of the Cartel on Coruscant held court there. He was also Anakin's target. He had been delighted when Sidious told him that he would get to use his abilities on a living, breathing target after almost five years of harsh training. Being the secret apprentice of an already secretive Sith Lord meant that you couldn't indulge your baser needs openly. Only training droids were on the receiving end of your ire and rarely, your Master. Anakin enjoyed their lightsaber lessons, the flow and ebb of combat and the challenge of trying to beat a superior foe thrilled him. He paid no mind to the cuts and burns from his Master's lightsaber. Sith do not train with toys. If I kill you or cut off your arm, so be it, Sidious had told him when he first tapped his shoulder in a duel. Both the scar and the lesson had been etched on his flesh, never to be forgotten. Existence is a continuous struggle and pain is fuel. That lightsaber's twin, it too fashioned from nigh-indestructible phrik alloy with a refined and elegant electrum finish was hidden within his tailored tunic's sleeve. His Master hadn't allowed him to create his own weapon just yet. He would receive that honor when he joined the Order completely, as his equal, something that the existence of Darth Plagueis prohibited. Therefore he had to use his Master's spare one for now. It will do. It will do just fine.

The bouncer laughed at him when he asked to be admitted into the club and guided to his boss but mere moments after that, it seemed to him like the best idea in the world. Anakin, in his perfectly tailored cloak and expensive clothes, his preferred style of dress after he arrived on the city world and befitting his status as the adopted son of a Senator, drew more than a few glances. I must look quaint or unnatural. He reached out to touch the minds of those in attendance and smiled under his hood as some them were afraid, paying their bills quickly in fear of an imminent shootout. Even the dregs of the Underworld can be wise sometimes. A few minutes and two flights of stairs later, he was inside Perhi's office. It was evident that the gangster loved luxury and opulence. He also seemed to wish that other people knew of this fact as well. Anakin hated showoffs, especially those that wished to hide their inadequacies behind their wealth. Something that both criminals and Senators seem to share, he thought. Perhi's inadequacy was his height. Even though he was a fully grown Human, Pehri stood at a meager 3 feet 11 inches. Anakin could look down upon him even as a child.

"How the hell did you get here, kid?", the gangster asked, both surprised and intrigued. The only thing he received in return was Anakin's laughter. He knew that this was a serious mission. Recovering the artifacts that this man's underlings stole would help advance the Great Plan but it was impossible to resist the urge to ridicule him. For all his training, fragments of the child that he was remained. And children could be extremely petty if they wished to.

"Why are you so short?", he exclaimed as the doors closed behind. "Did your mother drop you from your crib or something?" Pehri's eyes widened at the disrespect, his anger reverberating through the Force and reaching Anakin. It only served to heighten his enjoyment.

"I am a representative of the Black Sun. Do you know what I can do to you, ric…". Pehri didn't get to finish his sentence. The man was levitating over the spot that he stood, hands frantically clawing at his throat, gasping for air.

Anakin's laughter had also stopped. His face was twitching in anger. He was planning on ridiculing the man for a little bit more but his words reminded him of a time that other people could do anything they wanted to him. That time was long past. And this animal would know that nobody could do anything to him now. "Come on, animal. Out with it. What can you do to me?", he inquired calmly as his hands tightened into a fist for a few seconds, stopping any air from reaching the gangster's lungs. "Nothing to say? No ideas perhaps? Come on, slavers on Tatooine were very inventive. I am sure that a Coruscant kid like you can come up with something interesting." He moved his head slowly, disappointed with his inability to even think of something, Pehri's mind being only filled with fear. As much as he wished to crush his windpipe and be done with it, Anakin needed him. He released his grip slightly. "Tell me something else then. You stole something meant for my Master. A shipment from the archeological digs at Ziost. Where is it?"

"Dat…Datapad… Desk… L…Left Side…", the gangster could only say. Anakin kept him off the ground, moving his fingers as if he was scratching his throat, which only served to increase his fear. Anakin could feel it and drunk it in. He searched for a bit with his free hand, locating the datapad with the location of the artifacts quickly. "There it is. Thank you very much", he said as a devilish yet also childish smile formed on his face. And then, he closed his fist once again. It was over quickly. Pehri's dead body fell on the ground with a thump that only the dead weight of a dead man could produce.

That was easy, Anakin thought as he began humming the overture from Squid Lake, his and Sidious' favorite Mon Calamari opera. He approached the body and looked into Pehri's terrified and lifeless eyes. Anakin was sure that he had caused somebody's death in the past. Pod racing was a dangerous hobby. Causing an opponent's crash wasn't frowned upon neither could it be avoided entirely. But this was another affair altogether. Those deaths made him feel nothing. This death made him feel proud and strong. And there were going to be more of them in a short while. Anakin mounted Pehri's former chair. The leather squeaked beneath his touch as the boy tried to make himself comfortable. After an obligatory spin, Anakin turned his attention to Chel's computer. He deleted the camera logs and then activated the fire suppression system. He looked as Chel's patrons fled into the street, leaving only his security personnel behind. Some of them were now rushing towards their dead boss' office, putting two and two together. Anakin deactivated the security system, shutting off the cameras. The only witness to what would follow would be him and him alone. With a swift movement of his right hand, his Master's lightsaber was lowered in his hand.

The guards kicked the door in a few seconds later. They only saw Anakin standing before them, looking like the innocent child that he was supposed to be. "Where is the boss?", the guard closest to him, a red Twi'lek, demanded.

"Oh, the short man. Here he is", he only said. The guards only had a second to question his answer before their boss came crashing on their heads. Anakin ignited his Master's spare lightsaber, the crimson beam of plasma illuminating the dark room around him. He lunged forward at them, a shadow moving at speeds that only another of his kind could perceive, skewering the Twi'lek's belly before moving upwards, cutting him in half before bringing his saber down to the second guard on his left and then immediately swinging right at the third guard, dispatching them in mere seconds. The only survivor, a young woman tried moving towards the door as she had been pressed into the ground by the body of one of her cohorts. She was crying, sniveling the word Jedi, Jedi, Jedi. "Don't insult me", Anakin said, stabbing his saber through her neck, silencing her once and for all. "Then again… How would she know the difference?"

The boy stopped for a moment, taking in the sum of his work. Burned flesh, blood, something wringly that was probably a Twi'lek liver, all remnants of people that met a force that they couldn't possibly hope to counter.

He strutted out of the office confidently, the tune of Squid Lake returning to his lips as he realized the meaning behind the phrase Walking on air. Another guard appeared at the end of the corridor, screaming at the sight of the small hooded figure, the two small amber orbs of his eyes and crimson lightsaber in his hand. His cowardice disgusted Anakin. He didn't bother approaching him, pushing him on the wall behind him with a dismissive flip of two fingers. The wall turned red and the deed was done. Anakin could feel that those guards that remained with the establishment were dropping their weapons realizing that after his latest display, that fighting back was futile. He could see them now, on their knees, made up from a mish-mash of species but all of them equally afraid.

"Please Master Jedi, just arrest us. We don't want to die", they pleaded to ears that were deaf to their supplications.

"What is it with you people? You see a cape, a lightsaber and people flying around and you think that you are up against a Jedi." How annoying. The guards, already scared out of their minds, were now confused but then the boy's mind flew back to his earlier realization. "Huh…", he mussed before nodding to nobody in particular. "I am sorry ladies and gentlemen. It was unfair of me to presume that you would know of our Order. Allow me to explain a few key concepts"

His lesson was short. Anakin believed that his Master would approve of his presentation. He was certain that it got the point across rather well.

Later that day, Palpatine's apartment, 500 Republica Arcology

"Ani! Welcome back!", Danil exclaimed as he entered his Master's apartment. Anakin tried to restrain an eye roll at the sound of the Zeltron's voice. He knew that she meant well but she could be rather annoying at times. The pink skinned woman had been on the cruise ship that brought him to Coruscant all those years ago and through the years she was a semi-permanent fixture in his Master's circle. She was much more pleasant than that other woman that was in his adoptive father's periphery, a ghostly Umbaran named Sly Moore. "Don't you look like a proper gentleman? Ahh…", she moaned dramatically, a hand coming to rest on her forehead in an equally dramatic manner. "You're turning into proper little Palpatine, aren't you? We'll have to physically restrain all of your admirers"

Anakin visibly reddened at the torrent of unprompted flattery. For a boy that spend the first few years of his life as a nobody, worse than dirt, compliments always hit differently. And in Anakin's case, who always felt and later was keenly aware of his great importance and abilities, they only served as added validation. "Ah… thanks Danil", he said awkwardly.

"Did you have fun? Where were you?"

"Leave the boy alone, Danil", his Master's voice came from the far side of the living room. It was his Senatorial voice, commanding but immeasurably polite. The Zeltron could do nothing but comply. "Besides, you have places to be, don't you?" Danil nodded furiously and turned to Anakin. She felt courageous enough to place a kiss on his head and left without uttering another word.

As soon as they were alone, Anakin fell to one knee, quick to afford his Master the respect he deserved. With his eyes on the floor, he could only hear the clacking of Palpatine's shoes, coming ever closer.

"Rise, my boy", he said, still in his Senatorial, fatherly voice. "I trust that you were successful?"

"Of course", Anakin replied quickly, retrieving the datapad from one of his tunic's hidden pockets. "It contains the location of our property, Master." Palpatine took the datapad in his hands and gestured to his Apprentice to take a seat. Anakin promptly did as he was instructed and eagerly awaited the praise that he was sure would follow.

"I sense…death, my Apprentice", Palpatine said. "Well done. Did you use my lightsaber?", he inquired.

"I did"

"Why were you so sloppy? What if the Jedi catch on to us?", Palpatine said as his face hardened as easily as it had smiled earlier.

Anakin remained unaffected. He is testing me. "I think it was Darth Bane that spoke of the value of rumors, my Master. We do not exist. Let them think that one of their own went mad"

Silence fell between them for a few excrutiating seconds before his Master's laugh broke. Palpatine was gone and Sidious had come into the fore.

"Gooooood, my boy. Goooood! Should I be scared for my place already? Should I kill you now, perhaps, before you become too powerful?"

"I should hope not, my Master. There's much more to do before that, don't you agree?"

You haven't taugh me nearly enough

Author's notes: -Oh boy, this was a long one but it was also a pleasure to write. As it is evident this is nowhere near the Anakin of the Phantom Menace. He is less of a clueless nine year old and more like Damian from the Omen. A terribly evil child. That is the really difficult part of this fanfic. Making Anakin different but also recognizable. I decided to tackle the issue by keeping his motivations, beliefs and mannerisms similar to that of the original timeline when that is applicable. He is still resentful at being a slave, he is still cocky and aware of his own abilities and he still thinks spinning is a good trick. He is also much more confident with people since he has been involved in the Apprentice Legislature Program aka the Model United Nations in SPACE! Those of us that have been to those know that they loosen your tongue mighty quick (they also give you extra credits, which is always welcome)

-As for his power, keep in mind that he has been training for five years already and that it has been stated that he was a quick learner. The fact that he is naturally gifted in the Force and that the Sith are far more demanding teachers than the Jedi helps things along. He still has a long way to go though. If he tried to take on Obi Wan and Qui Gon for example, this fanfic would be a lot shorter than I plan it to be.

-Till we meet again