The story of the fall of Anakin Skywalker is a tragedy beyond telling. From the slave boy to the famed Jedi, his betrayal sent waves throughout the galaxy. But what if during his first major test, a person from the past appeared to him? Would his resolve crumble, or harden him more.

Her temple was burning. Off in the distance she could see the smoke billowing into the dark night sky. She had just decided to return to the Order as well. She remembered vividly the events that put her in this position in the first place. Three years ago, she had been falsely accused of bombing the Jedi Temple. The Council had expelled her and she stood trial. She was about to be sentenced to death when her master, Anakin, had saved her by showing the real culprit to the courts. Her friend Barris had betrayed everyone, in attempts to show the Jedi how the order was crumbling beneath them. As it turns out, she appeared to be right. After being spared by the courts, the Jedi Council had decided that she could come back, and under the rank of Knight. She felt a pang of guilt even to this day on her decision to leave. She still remembered the conversation with her master.

"The council didn't trust me, so how can I trust myself?"

"This is your life, you can't just walk away from this."

"I'm sorry Anakin, but I have to figure some stuff out on my own."

"I understand. I know what it is like wanting to leave the order."

"I know."

She obviously was referring to Padme. She saw the way the two of them stole looks at each other. The way they acted around each other. One day, she was waiting for her master to come out of a meeting with the Chancellor and she heard voices from the next room. She peeked around and saw the two of them kissing. That had sealed the deal for her. She didn't tell the council because Anakin was her friend and mentor, she couldn't betray him. Plus she didn't see anything wrong with it. It didn't affect him in any way.

Now she had everything figured out. She had spoken with Barris before her execution. The courts had inflicted the same penalty on the young Jedi padawan. She had reconciled her relationship with Barris. Not right away, but through long hours of meditation after the execution. That was true she did keep up with her force exercises. She made sure that if she would return to the temple, she would be just as good, if not a better Jedi as before. She had also found her lightsaber and shoto. She kept practicing with her lightsabers too. It was a good way to stay in shape, plus it helped keep some bad intentioned people off her back. For the first time now she was going back to the temple, but not to return to the Order. Because the entire place was up in flames.

She arrived at the front gates and immediately felt a surge of pain and despair in the Force. Thousands of Jedi were dying. She felt Master Plo, crashing into a building. Master Secura being shot in the back along with Master Mundi. She felt Master Kenobi being shot off a cliff. So much pain and for an unknown reason. She was going to find out though. Before entering, she felt for her old master, trying to see if he was still alive. She couldn't tell anything about him though. His presence was clouded by something so powerful, she couldn't break through. She let out a shaky breath and entered the temple.

Upon entering, she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Hundreds of clones were firing upon the Jedi. Masters, Knights, and even Padawans weren't spared by the clones. She slunk into a corner and felt for the youngest signature in the temple. She found a group of younglings in the council room. She quickly raced her way towards the council room. Along the way she met minor resistance from a few clones. They were easily no match for her, but she felt a pang of guilt for cutting down the troops. She noticed that they were from the 501st, the soldiers that she had fought along with on countless missions. She couldn't believe that they would be doing this. She reached the council room and her heart almost stopped. There stood her former master cutting down the younglings, no remorse. After the last child was killed, he turned around and their eyes met.

"Master," she said. "What are you doing?"

"Ahsoka?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"

"The Temple was on fire, there was so much pain in the Force. I was going to see the council to find out why," she said. "But now there is no council left."

"Ahsoka," he said. "The Jedi are evil. I saw Master Windu attempt to kill the chancellor himself."

"That isn't true," she said.

"Oh but it is," he said menacingly.

She noticed something about his eyes. They were dark and unforgiving.

"Anakin," she said. "What is wrong with you?"

"I have realized the Jedi were wrong all along," he said. "I will avenge my new master by destroying the Jedi."

"You've turned to the dark side," she said shockingly.

Anakin's face showed no guilt, just pure anger. Her face was shocked beyond belief. Tears started to stream down her face. There was no way that this was happening.

"Join me Ahsoka," he said. "You could be a valuable ally. You could bring peace to our new Empire."

"I don't even know you anymore," she said. "What I do know is that I won't turn. I will protect my friends, my family!"

She turned on her two lightsabers and assumed a defensive stance.

"You will never defeat me," he said. "The power of the dark side is too strong. I will be forced to kill you."

He lit his lightsaber and began with a vicious onslaught of attacks. Ahsoka had barely any time to parry any of the attacks. She quickly gave ground, blocking with her main saber and shoto every other swing. Anakin's anger swelled in the strength of his attacks. Pure rage fueled his actions and Ahsoka was having a hard time keeping up. They were down the steps from the council room by now and working their way towards the library. Ahsoka saw an opening in his defenses and put a quick strike in with her shoto. Anakin had to block the shot which gave Ahsoka a second to land a kick to his chest and it knocked him off balance. She turned and ran into the library. Anakin followed slowly, knowing that she would never escape.

She turned a corner and hid behind a bookcase. She had to compose herself, her life was on the line. She still couldn't believe the situation she was in. Never, in her wildest dreams, had she thought that she would be doing this. She wiped the tears that were on her face quickly and focused back on the task at hand. She could feel Anakin moving in her direction and she moved around a row of holo books to try and ambush him. She jumped out from behind the shelf and swung her lightsaber right at his head. He spun with incredible quickness and blocked her strike.

"You think it's going to be that easy," he taunted. "I truly failed as your master didn't I? Never teaching you one thing about combat."

"You failed me as a master," she said. "But not because of that. By what you have done."

He pushed back on their lightsaber lock and began yet another onslaught of attacks. Their battle moved out of the library and into the main hall of the temple. Ahsoka began to notice that several clones had been gathered around, watching their fight. Anakin swung at her legs and she paired with her main saber but that left her midsection exposed and a quick punch with his metal hand sent her flying across the floor. She groaned in pain, feeling several ribs crack with that punch. The clones around her didn't attack, but she noticed one clone out of the others.

"Rex?" she gasped.

The clone had blood spattered across his helmet and several lightsabers and padawan braids clipped to his belt.

"I'm sorry Ahsoka," Rex says. "But orders are orders, and the Jedi must be destroyed."

She couldn't even comprehend how much pain she was feeling. One of her best friends throughout the war had turned as easily as Anakin had.

"You see Ahsoka," Anakin called out. "There is no hope. You are alone."

"There will always be hope through the force," she replied.

"Nothing can save you. The Empire will succeed without fail," he said.

"What about Padme?" she asked. "What will happen to her? You think that she is just going to go along with this?"

"How did you know?" he asked after a minute, sensing that she knew his most guarded secret.

"I've always known," she spat back, her ribs aching.

"She will be safe with my new power," he said, pushing away his doubt again and hardening his heart. "You, however, will be destroyed."

He began attacking the weary Togruta once again. Her defense was starting to wear out as the attacks became faster and stronger. She was losing power fast and he knew it. He kept up his attack. The clones had formed a circle around the two, there was no escape. He attacked harder until he broke through her defenses and slashed her across the leg, causing a scream of pain to come up through the young woman. She was on a knee on the ground when Anakin force pushed her to the other side of the circle. Both of her lightsabers went flying and she was defenseless. She pushed herself up on her knees and looked at her old master. The man she once knew was gone. The hatred in his eyes, the lightsaber by his side, and the army of clones behind him. She was truly dead, and had accepted her fate.

"It's over," he said. "You've failed in your most noble mission."

"It's never over," she said. "If you kill me, I will always be with you. You'll always be looking at me over your shoulder."

"You're wrong," he said. "Any last words?"

She quickly Force pulled a blaster pistol from Rex's holster and pointed it right at her heart.

"I'm glad of the time I had with my master. Sadly he has been killed, I hope to see him again someday."

She pulled the trigger and the togruta slumped to the ground dead. Vader deactivated his lightsaber and walked over to his former padawan's corpse. He picked up her lightsabers and put them in his robes. He tossed Rex his pistol and turned to the clone troops around in the circle.

"Let this be an example," he addressed them. "Every Jedi must be destroyed. Even the ones you have once fought with."

He gestured at the body and all the clones gazed at it, their former commander on the ground, blaster wound still smoking.

"Good Lord Vader," a cackling voice said. "You have accepted your true feelings."

Sidious came out from behind a wall of clones and looked at Anakin's handiwork. Vader kneeled in front of the Sith Lord and the Emperor addressed him.

"Now make your way to the Mustafar system and finish your mission."

"Yes master," he said.

Mustafar

"It's over Anakin," Obi-Wan said. "I have the high ground."

"Don't underestimate my power," Vader replied.

"Don't try it."

Vader jumped and his renewed vigor with the death of his padawan and the betrayal of his wife gave him extra push. Enough where Obi-Wan had to adjust as Vader was mid jump, causing one foot to slip slightly on the bank of the lava river, and it proved to be fatal. Vader landed behind his old master and swung, slicing Obi-Wan in half and sending his body tumbling down. Vader looked back and force pulled the lightsaber to him.

A shuttle passed overhead, carrying a dark presence. Vader clipped Kenobi's saber to his belt and went to greet his new master.

When he got to the platform, he already saw a couple of clones loading Padme's body on a medical cot to take back with them. That was good, his child would be most powerful in the force, whether Padme lived at this point, Vader couldn't care less.

As Sidious walked down the ramp of the shuttle, Vader went and bowed on one knee before him.

"Well done Lord Vader," Sidious said. "You have proven worthy of your name. The remaining Jedi will pose no threat to the Empire, and with the birth of your child, we will control the ultimate power in the galaxy."

"See there's one thing about that," Anakin said, his eyes flashing yellow a split second before springing up and shoving his lightsaber right through Sidious' jaw. The Emperor had a surprised look on his face, not expecting the betrayal so quickly from his apprentice.

"The Jedi might be evil," Vader said, whispering into Sidious' ear. "But you still lied to me."

The Emperor slumped to the ground dead and the clones that were there turned to Vader. His gaze swept over them and they just saluted him, knowing that Vader was now the man in charge. Anakin turned as the rest of the factory sunk into the lava, eyes a sickening yellow as he felt all the power fall into his hands.

The Galaxy plunged further into darkness, as Vader fell deeper to the Dark Side with the murder of his former padawan and master at his hand. As the ultimate weapon is being constructed and the twins of destiny in Vader's hands, hope seems lost. But, even in the darkest times, there is always a shining light.

To be continued…...

A/N

Hello! In honor of Marvel finishing up their What If? first season, I thought to compile my one shots, tweaking them a bit of course, and start a new book of one/two/three shots exploring the many What If? questions in the Star Wars universe. First three chapters will come out quickly cause I already have most of them written. Then the fun begins.

Reviews always welcome!