Shadow's Odyssey 2: The Chaos Continues
The Skywalker family was wrapped in painfully awkward silence as Anakin and Luke worked to repair the ship. As he worked, Luke subtly signaled to Leia. He had an idea and he needed her help.
In response, Leia suddenly started screaming like a banshee. Anakin turned swiftly, startled by the noise.
"What's going on?"
"This droid just tried to kill me!"
Anakin Force Pulled Leia out of Grievous's grasp and ignited his lightsaber. "I'm delivering Luke to Sidious, just be patient!"
The android showed no reaction. Luke, meanwhile, had moved over to the communications and was making a call.
Katooni answered. "Luke! Where are you?"
"Um, we're stranded in the middle of space."
"That doesn't help much."
"My dad's trying to take us to Sidious. You need to find us before we get there!"
"Luke!" Anakin shouted. Logic now overcoming his paranoia, he stormed to the cockpit. "Luke, get away from there!"
Anakin approached the controls, but Luke pushed him away. Katooni watched helplessly as the two Skywalkers fought.
"Let me talk to him."
Katooni jumped. Shadow had snuck up behind her.
The hedgehog stepped forward. "Luke, let me speak to your father."
Luke abruptly disengaged from the fight, letting Anakin stumble forward. "You don't understand he's-"
"Just go and let me speak to him."
Luke slowly left.
Anakin moved to hit the end transmission button, but Shadow interrupted him.
"Just listen for a minute, okay?"
"Not this time."
"We beat Sidious before, and we can do it again."
"What's the point if he keeps coming back?"
"We'll figure something out." Shadow insisted.
"As long as Sidious is alive, my family is in danger. This is the only way to keep them alive."
"Well maybe they'd rather be dead."
Anakin narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about?"
"This clearly isn't what they want."
"That's because they don't understand."
"I bet Padme understands, she's been through this before."
"You think she wants to die?"
Shadow took in a deep breath and haltingly began. "I… once had a friend. Her name was Maria. We lived on a space station together. One day, a group of soldiers showed up and tried to capture me. We tried to flee in an escape pod, but the soldiers caught up to us. I was in one of the pods, Maria was at the controls. We were cornered with nowhere to go. One of the soldiers pointed his gun at Maria and told her to step away from the control panel. I was scared. I wanted her to do what the man said. But she didn't. She pulled the lever to launch the escape pod. And the soldier shot her. That image of her, laying there bleeding on floor while my escape pod launched has haunted me every moment since. But recently, I noticed something in that image that I hadn't before. Maria was looking back at me and she was smiling. She was dying and yet she was smiling at me. She knew this would happen if she pulled that lever and she didn't care. Because pulling that lever meant that I would escape. After she died, I was so angry. It should have been me that died. I was the one they were there for. I spent so much time thinking about how I wanted things to be, I never considered what she wanted. She wanted me to escape. She wanted me to use my powers to help people. She wanted me to live."
"So what's your point?" Anakin asked.
"My point is that if Padme loves you as much as you love her, then I think she'd rather die than watch you do this to yourself."
Anakin slammed his hands into the console. "You don't know anything about my family. They are going to survive this while you and your little group get destroyed. The time of the Jedi is over. The galaxy belongs to Sidious now and my family will live under his rule."
"And they will hate you for it."
Anakin ended the transmission.
After arriving on Mandalore, Luke and Leia were brought right to the throne room.
"Ah, Lord Vader. You have returned with my prize." Sidious slowly approached Luke to examine him.
Luke was uncomfortable with the yellow eyes that seemed to stare into his soul. Padme was there with a chain around her neck. She kept eyes on the floor and didn't say a word.
"Yes, he is quite powerful." Sidious mused. "Yet, he possesses too much compassion. Too much hope." He turned to Anakin. "Take him to the training room and correct these flaws."
"As you wish."
The Grievous android took Luke and Leia and followed. Anakin looked back at Padme, who still stared determinedly at the floor. He reached out to touch her, but she jerked away. Anakin retracted his arm and followed Grievous out of the room.
At the training hall, Grievous continued to watch Leia while Anakin gave Luke a wooden training saber. He taught Luke how to hold it and wield it. Luke followed his instructions but showed little interest.
Anakin picked up a training saber of his own. "Alright, now I want to swing at me with everything you've got."
Luke swung at him and Anakin easily blocked the strike.
"That was pathetic. Do it again."
Luke swung again, harder this time. Anakin blocked again.
"No, no, no. You're still holding back. I can feel your anger and frustration, but you're not using them!"
"Because I don't want to. I don't want to do any of this!"
"You always wanted to learn the ways of the Force, well now you are!"
"I wanted to be a Jedi."
Anakin struck Luke across the face with his training saber. Leia started screaming, but Grievous prevented her from interfering.
"The Jedi are weak! The Jedi failed! The Jedi do not have what it takes to survive! Now attack me!"
Luke gave him a defiant look and tossed the training saber aside. "No."
Anakin smacked him again. Luke stumbled backwards and fell on his back.
"Pick up your weapon and fight!"
Leia's wails grew even louder. Luke stood back up.
"I'm not going to be like you!'
"If you don't join Sidious, you will die! There is no other option here!"
"Then I choose death."
Anakin's fist clenched so tightly around the training saber the wood began to crack. He prepared to deliver another strike… and Leia exploded.
Anakin was thrown across the room by an invisible wave of power. The walls and ceiling were all cracked. Anakin looked at Luke, thinking that the burst of power had come from him. But Luke looked just as surprised as he was and seemed to be looking at something behind him.
So he turned around and saw Leia standing in the middle of all the destruction, her eyes boiling with rage.
Anakin was amazed. Leia was strong with the Force. He began to walk towards her, only for Leia to unleash another powerful Force Wave and send him crashing into the wall again. As Anakin tried to pick himself up, his lightsaber detached from his belt and flew into Leia's hand.
"Leia-"
"Shut up!" Leia screamed. "Just shut up! I don't want to hear any more of what you have to say!" Leia approached and activated the lightsaber. "I don't ever want to hear you speak again."
"Leia!" Luke shouted. "Leia, don't do this! Don't be like him! Don't you see this is what he wants?"
Leia looked Luke, then back at Anakin. She deactivated the lightsaber and threw it at her father. She threw her arms around Luke and began to cry.
Anakin stared at the tears in horror. The rage he saw in Leia, he almost couldn't recognize her. Then another horrible realization came over him.
Was this how he looked?
