Chapter 14: Showdown On Mustafar
If there was a single place in the galaxy that evil would have been happy to call home, Mustafar was it.
It was a violent planet; its atmosphere was breathable, but only in the strictest sense of the word. The smell of sulfur and ozone hung thick in the air, carried on Mustafar's ever-blowing winds across the barren, violent landscape.
The planet's surface was a sea of tectonic upheaval, and the volcanoes and fissures that marked the places where the planet's thick crust rubbed and collided violently against one another spewed molten hot lava and thick, gray ash high into the planet's brownish-red sky, where it mixed with the angry, dark clouds that swirled through the planet's atmosphere.
The small gunship fired its landing thrusters, kicking up huge, thick plumes of ash as it rotated slowly and descended toward the surface. It's running lights flickered and flashed, as the combined force of the thrusters and the swirling wind surrounded the ship in a thick fog of ash and dust.
The engines began to wind down as the landing gear touched the rocky terrain, and the ship's small, center-mounted entry ramp began to open and drop quickly toward the surface as the thick cloud of ash began to settle.
Darth Vader pulled his hood up over his head, as he stepped into the ship's open doorway; he narrowed his eyes and blinked, several times, as he felt the fine dust begin to sting his eyes. He reached up with his gloved hands and pulled the thin, black cloth mask that hung around his neck up and over his nose, as his narrow, glowing eyes looked out across the landscape toward the massive stone facility that jutted from the face of the nearby mountain a few hundred meters from him. He could see the lights that flickered through the massive, roughly hewn stone archway that lead into the underground facility as the thick, ash laden air whipped over the rocky terrain.
They were in there, that much he knew; he had one last job to accomplish for his dark master, and he relished this one, even more so than before, since he had heard Nute Gunray's haughty, angry voice on the comlink less than an hour ago. He closed his eyes, and he could feel the powerful wave of hate and anger that brewed within him.
Let the hate flow through you, my young apprentice, his master had instructed him, on many occasions; it was a lesson he had learned well, as his master well knew. Love was something he had never known, and from his earliest moments, as the first twenty years of his life had been compressed into only four by the Kaminoan scientists who had created him, he had been immersed in the dark, sinister counterpart of what his master had told him was a weak, useless emotion.
Hate was something that he lived for; he thrived on it, and his black, merciless heart consumed it at a rate that had even alarmed his first master, Count Dooku.
Vader smiled, as he remembered the conversation that he had overheard a short time before his venerable old master had fallen under his searing, crimson blade, just a day or two before the two of them had traveled to join General Grievous aboard the Imperial Hand.
"He's unstable, My Lord," Count Dooku said, as he looked at Darth Sidious' image on the holopad in front of him. "I fear that the Kaminoans may have underestimated the affect that the midichlorian insertion process would have on him."
"Unstable?" Sidious asked, as Vader peered silently around the corner of the laboratory where Dooku stood, wringing his hands slowly as he addressed his master. "Unstable in what way?"
"He is given to fits of extreme anger and rage, My Lord," Dooku said, nodding his head as he addressed his master. "He is sadistic, almost beyond comprehension. I fear that the artificial insertion and manipulation of his midichlorian count may have had unpredictable results."
"He is able to control the Force, is he not, Lord Tyranus?" Sidious said, his impatient, brooding scowl gazing out at Dooku from underneath his thick, dark hood.
"Yes, My Lord," Dooku said, nodding his head with a deeply worried look on his face. "But his abilities are not natural. He can manipulate the Force, but not consistently. He falters, on occasion, and when he does, he becomes exceedingly violent and irrational. I fear we may have trouble controlling him."
"Let me worry about that, Lord Tyranus," Sidious said, nodding his head as Dooku took a long, thoughtful breath and sighed deeply. "Your concern is to have him ready in time to rendezvous with General Grievous aboard the Imperial Hand. Concern yourself with that, and that alone. Is that understood?"
"Understood, my Master," Dooku said, and he bowed reverently, as Vader watched from the shadows as his long time instructor in the Dark Side powered down the transmitter, and then walked slowly out of the laboratory into the darkness.
"You did have a little trouble controlling me, didn't you, Master Dooku?" Vader said, as he reached down and checked the lightsaber that hung at his waist. He smiled as he looked back up after a long moment, toward the lights that flickered from the rocky structure several hundred meters away from him.
"But then," Vader sighed, almost contentedly, as he pulled his cloak tight around him and started down the ramp toward the planet's surface, "you were never the one I swore to obey."
He had one last mission to complete for his dark master, and it would soon be over; the sniveling, backstabbing leaders of the Separatists would soon be rewarded richly for their involvement in his master's plans, he would see to that. Vader smiled to himself, as he stepped off the ramp and onto the planet's hard, dusty surface and began to make his way quickly through the swirling dust toward the rocky archway ahead of him.
This mission would soon be over, and then he would be free to pursue the one thing that he had asked of his Master.
He would find this Anakin Skywalker. And he would destroy him.
Anakin leaned over the armrest at his side, as he reached over to the pilot's seat where Obi-Wan slept, taking hold of the sleeve of his old master's tunic with his right hand.
"Master," Anakin said, as he tugged several times on Obi-Wan's sleeve, "Wake up. We're here."
Obi-Wan opened his eyes slowly, and he blinked hard several times, as he sat up slowly in the thickly padded chair, extending his arms out to his sides and stretching hard as he yawned, deeply.
"Already?" Obi-Wan asked sleepily, taking a deep breath and blinking his eyes again as he glanced around the cockpit of their ship and looked back at Anakin. "How long was I asleep?"
"Only about an hour and a half, Master," Anakin grinned, as he looked back out of the cockpit window, to the large, reddish-black planet that quickly began to fill their viewscreen. "We should be on the ground in about ten minutes."
Obi-Wan turned and looked out toward the planet that loomed ahead of them, and then looked back down to the console in front of him. "Were you able to keep our fix on his ship?" he asked, as he looked at the bright yellow dot that flashed on the display in the center of the ship's main console.
"Yes," Anakin said, nodding his head as he reached over and punched up the controls on the navigation computer, preparing to bring them into the planet's atmosphere on their final approach. "He landed about five minutes ago," Anakin said, as he looked back over to his old master, watching him as he watched the large yellow indicator flash, intermittently, on the long range sensor display in front of them.
"The signal's weak," Obi-Wan said, as he reached over and brought their ship's sensors up to full power. "It's dropping in and out."
"The planet's atmosphere is causing a lot of interference," Anakin said, nodding his head as he turned his attention back to the cockpit window. "It should clear up once we get down to the planet's surface."
Obi-Wan frowned deeply, as he suddenly saw a second indicator flash on the display, just for a moment, and then disappear again. "That's funny," Obi-Wan said, as he reached down and adjusted the sensor controls again.
"What?" Anakin asked, turning his attention from the window back to Obi-Wan's puzzled face.
"The sensors were picking up another ship, just behind us," Obi-Wan said, as he watched the display intently for a long moment. "It was there for a moment, but it's gone now."
"Are you sure?" Anakin asked, his brow furrowing just a bit as he watched Obi-Wan study the display. "We're dropping into the upper parts of the atmosphere now," he said. "The sensors are showing an awful lot of sulfur and trace metals. Maybe it was just a reflection."
"I suppose that's possible," Obi-Wan said, nodding his head and looking back up at Anakin, as his thoughts shifted once again to the one they were following. "Have you been able to get a fix on the spot where Vader landed?"
"Barely," Anakin said, shaking his head as he looked back at Obi-Wan. "The sensors aren't working very well through this metallic mess, but I was able to get something on the infrared."
"There appears to be some type of structure near the place where he landed," Anakin said, as he turned his attention to the ship's computer console. "It might be another droid factory, judging from what I was able to pull up on the infrared imager a few minutes ago."
Obi-Wan looked at the display in front of him, as Anakin tapped the control pad on the ship's console quickly, pulling up the images he had recorded. He looked intently at the brightly colored, somewhat obscured recording; he eyes were immediately drawn to the three bright white and yellow plumes that appeared to roll up from the planet's surface against the dark red background of the infrared image.
"Exhaust vents," Obi-Wan said, his brow furrowing as he looked back at his companion in the copilot's seat. "Just like the ones we found on Utapau."
"And Geonosis," Anakin said, nodding his head. "It's a pretty fair bet that the Separatists have those factories strewn across the galaxy."
"And that we may find a lot of those droids waiting on us when we get there," Obi-Wan said, nodding his head as he looked up at Anakin, as they both exchanged a grim, thoughtful expression.
"Why is it, Anakin," Obi-Wan sighed, leaning back in his chair again, "that you and I always seem to get more than we bargain for on these missions?"
"I don't know, Master," Anakin sighed in reply, shaking his head slowly as he turned and looked back at his friend for a long moment. "For two guys who never went looking for trouble, we sure seem to find our fair share of it, don't we?"
"We do indeed," Obi-Wan sighed, smiling weakly back at Anakin, as his young friend turned and looked back out of the cockpit window again. Obi-Wan watched him, for a long moment; he looked back out of the window in front of him again, and then turned his attention back toward Anakin again.
"Anakin," Obi-Wan said quietly, as he looked down at his lap for a moment, "Just in case anything should happen, there's something I've been wanting to say to you."
"What is it, Master?" Anakin asked, turning and looking back at Obi-Wan's thoughtful face.
"I know how hard it was for you, and for Padmé, to make the choice to come with me that night," Obi-Wan said, looking at Anakin with a deeply thankful expression on his bearded face. "I just wanted to say thank you."
"You're the closest friend I've ever had, Anakin," Obi-Wan said, nodding his head as he looked at his young companion. "And you've become a great Jedi Knight," he said with a smile. "I know Master Qui-Gon would be proud of you."
Anakin smiled, and he turned and looked back out of the window ahead of him for a long moment. "Thank you, Master," he said quietly, as he turned and looked back at Obi-Wan gratefully. "That means a lot, coming from you."
Anakin sat quietly for a moment, and Obi-Wan watched him as he reached over and trimmed down the engines as they started their descent into the planet's atmosphere. "And just for the record," Anakin said quietly, as he looked back up at Obi-Wan once more, "you were always, and still are, a lot more than a mentor to me," Anakin said. "You're the only father I've ever known."
Anakin's smile widened, as he turned and glanced back out of the cockpit window in front of him. "I know there were some times when you weren't quite so sure how I was going to turn out," he chuckled. "And I have to admit, I wasn't so sure, either, there for a while. I hope I wasn't too much of a problem child."
"You had your moments," Obi-Wan laughed, nodding his head. "And you did have me worried there for a while."
Obi-Wan took a long, deep breath, and then looked back at Anakin with a thoughtful smile. "But I can't think of anyone else that I'd rather have here with me now."
They looked at each other silently for a moment, and then Obi-Wan watched as Anakin pulled back on the control yoke as the planet's atmosphere began to glow as it slipped over the hull of their rapidly descending ship. "We should be on the ground in a few minutes, Master," Anakin said. "You might want to strap yourself in. The ride's probably going to get pretty bumpy from here on out."
Obi-Wan slipped the harness up and over his shoulder, fastening it tightly as he watched Anakin swing them down into the thick, cloudy atmosphere. They two of them sat in silence, as the ship began to bounce violently as Anakin brought them down toward the surface through the thick, angry clouds.
There really wasn't anything left that they could think of to say; they had already said what they needed to. They knew what they were getting themselves into, and they had since the moment that they had left Coruscant in pursuit of their quarry. They would just have to trust in the living Force, and in each other, that they would be able to get out of this one alive.
Anakin had, after all, made a promise. And the two of them were determined to keep it.
Padmé watched the stars that streaked by them suddenly shrink back to bright, shining points of light as Artoo disengaged the hyperdrive and reengaged the Destiny's sublight engines. She watched, with a growing sense of foreboding, as the angry, red planet began to loom large in window in front of her.
"Are you still tracking him, Threepio?" Padmé asked anxiously, as she watched the small indicator on the display of the Destiny's console flash on and off, intermittently.
"It appears, Mistress Padmé," Threepio said, turning and looking back at her from his seat in the copilot's chair, "that they've just entered the planet's atmosphere. Their signal is intermittent at the moment, at best," he said, apologetically, as Padmé turned her anxious face back toward the viewscreen in front of her.
Padmé looked back over at Threepio, as she heard him begin to speak again as he studied the display in front of him.
"What a dreadful planet," Threepio said, his electronic voice laced with a sense of nervousness, if that was actually possible for a droid. "The atmosphere is laced with trace chemicals of all kinds," he said, looking back up at his mistress as she listened to him intently. "Many of them are metallic. It's going to be very difficult for our sensors to penetrate that until we get down to the surface."
"See if you can pick up anything more on the infrared scanners," Padmé said, as she reached over and dialed up the power of the Destiny's sensor array to maximum. "I don't want to lose them."
"Artoo," Padmé said, as she looked over her shoulder toward the little droid as he sat at the pilot's station behind Threepio, "go ahead and start the landing sequence."
Artoo let fly with a long series of whistled and clicks, and Padmé looked back at Threepio as he studied the display in front of him.
Threepio looked up, just in time to see Padmé wince and squeeze her eyes shut tightly, snatching her hands off the control yoke in front of her and grasping her stomach tightly as she moaned in pain.
"OOooowwwww!" Padmé exclaimed, as the sharp, squeezing pain moved quickly from her lower back and across her stomach; it was the same pain she had felt a few hours earlier, only this time, it was considerably more intense.
"Mistress Padmé," Threepio said, standing up quickly and shuffling to her side. "Are you quite all right?"
Padmé squeezed her eyes shut, and she reached up and took hold of Threepio's metal arm tightly with her left hand; she sat quietly for a moment, as the pain began to subside again, and then she looked up at her tall, metal companion.
"I'm fine, Threepio," Padmé gasped quietly, nodding her head as she looked up at him. "It's nothing," she said, taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly. "I'll be fine."
"Are you quite certain, Mistress Padmé?" Threepio asked, as he looked down at her intently. "Perhaps you should lie down on the bench for a moment," he said, as he gestured toward the bench in the passenger's compartment behind them.
"No," Padmé said, shaking her head as she gently pushed him back toward the copilot's seat. "I'll be fine. You just keep your eyes on that sensor array. Don't worry about me."
Threepio looked at her for another moment, and then he shuffled back and took his seat again at the copilot's station. He glanced over at Padmé for another moment, and watched her as she took a long, deep breath and rubbed her hands gently over her round stomach.
"We're getting a weak signal on the infrared," Threepio said, as he studied the display in front of him. "I believe that Artoo should be able to track them."
"Good," Padmé said, as she leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes.
Threepio turned and looked back at Padmé; he paused for a just a moment, and then cocked his metal head as he looked at his mistress thoughtfully.
"Mistress Padmé," he said, as she opened her eyes and looked back at him, "Don't you think that now would be a good time to try to contact Master Ani? Especially in light of…"
"No," Padmé said, shaking her head as she looked back out of the viewscreen in front of her. "If I try to contact him now, he'll just tell me to turn around and go home," she said, as she leaned back in the pilot's chair where she sat. "And I have no intention of going home without him this time."
"Scan for his ship, the minute we get through the atmosphere," Padmé said, looking back at Threepio. "I want to put this ship down next to his, as soon as possible."
Threepio would have sighed, if it had been possible for him, as he looked at the determined look on Padmé's beautiful face. She wasn't budging this time; she knew where she was going, and she had no intention of settling for anything less, and nothing, not even pain, was going to stop her.
"Yes, Mistress Padmé," he said, as he watched her place her hands back on the control yoke in front of her and squeeze it tightly as she looked out of the cockpit window. "Might I suggest, at least," he said, as Padmé turned and looked at him again, "that you let Artoo bring the ship in? I don't mean to be rude, but I for one would feel just a bit safer if he brought us in, under the current circumstances."
"That might not be such a bad idea," Padmé sighed, nodding her head slowly. Threepio watched her for a long moment, and then turned and watched the signal from Anakin's ship flicker on, then off, then on again, as they approached Mustafar's thick atmosphere.
Padmé took another long, deep breath, and she lowered her hands from the control yoke and placed them gently on her stomach again; she closed her eyes tightly, as she felt another twinge of pain run through her tired, worried body as Artoo turned the Destiny and started their descent to the surface.
"He's late," Geonosian Archduke Poggle the Lesser clicked, in his native tongue, as he slapped his brown skinned hand down on the smooth round table where he and his companions sat. "Are you sure you gave him the correct coordinates?"
"Of course I'm sure," Nute Gunray snapped, eyeing his companion across the table with an air of contempt. "Don't try to blame the incompetence of Master Sidious' apprentice on me."
"Perhaps he is merely delayed," Gunray's aid, Rune Haako interjected, as he watched Nute turn and look at him, his two almond-shaped black eyes glaring at him as he spoke.
Rune fell silent quickly, lowering his gaze to the table in front of him, as Viceroy Gunray's cold stare sent a chill down his spine. "If you wish to retain your head another day," Gunray snapped, glaring at his aid angrily, "then you will keep your tongue still behind your teeth."
"He will be here," Wat Tambor, foreman of the Techno Union said, his voice ringing through the electronic voicebox at the front of his thick grey environment suit, "Master Sidious has given us his word that Lord Vader will deliver the Chancellor to us."
"Master Sidious gave me his word once before," Nute Gunray said, turning his attention to the Techno Union foreman who sat across from him, watching as Wat adjusted the knob on the front of his environment suit.
"He assured me that he would deliver a certain senator from Naboo to me," the Viceroy said, as he stood up, kicking his chair back angrily and walking across the room, his hands folded behind his back as the others at the table watched him pace the floor, angrily. "He failed to deliver her to me then," he said, turning back and looking at his companions. "I fail to see why I should believe that he will make good on his promise to us this time."
"If I recall correctly," Passel Argente, chairman of the Corporate Alliance, said with a smile as he leaned back in his chair and smiled slyly at the Viceroy's angry face, "she was delivered to you, as promised. You simply couldn't keep her," Passel said with a laugh, as he glanced around the table at his companions.
Nute Gunray felt himself trembling with anger as he listened to the laughter that echoed around the table; he glared back at Passel, as the tall, gangly Alliance leader leaned back in his chair and laughed at him as he folded his hands across his chest over his thick robes.
"Come, Viceroy," Passel said, extending his hand to the empty chair where Nute had been sitting a moment before, patting the armrest, "Come and sit down, before you fall down. I'm certain that Lord Vader will be here at any moment."
Gunray raised his hand angrily as he started to respond to Argente's insulting, condescending remark; he stopped and looked back toward the door, however, as he heard the heavy click of the latch, and his companions turned in their chairs and watched as the large, double doors began to swing open.
"You see, Viceroy?" Passel Argente said, as he turned back and looked at Gunray's angry face as the others watched the dark, hooded figure stride into the room toward them, his boots echoing off of the cold, hard floor as he walked. "Lord Vader has arrived," Argente nodded, as he turned and looked back toward Darth Sidious' apprentice with a smile. "Just as he said he would."
"My apologies, gentlemen," Darth Vader said, as he stopped, reaching up and pulling the mask down from his face as the Separatist leaders looked at him intently. "I'm sorry if I've kept you waiting," he said, as he peered out at them from underneath his hood.
The Separatists leaders watched from their places around the table, as Gunray walked angrily around the table toward Vader's hooded form. "Your apology is neither needed, or accepted," Nute Gunray snapped angrily, as he walked directly up in front of the Dark Lord's apprentice. "All that we require of you is that you deliver the Chancellor to us," he said, as he came to a stop directly in front of the young Sith. "Immediately."
Darth Vader looked up, as Viceroy Gunray came and stood directly in front of him, glaring at him. "Patience, Viceroy," he growled, as he looked up directly into Nute's large, black eyes.
"Where is the Chancellor?" Gunray snapped, as he glared up at Vader's cold, angry stare. "I demand that you hand him over to us, immediately!"
"I must apologize for the Viceroy's behavior, Lord Vader," Passel Argente said, leaning back and looking at Vader with a smile. "I'm afraid that patience, or manners, haven't been his strong points as of late," he said with a laugh, as the others around the table began to laugh with him.
The sound of the laughter that rang through the room was suddenly broken by the chilling sound of the weapon that powered up in Darth Vader's gloved hand. Passel Argente turned around as he heard the peculiar sound, and glanced back to the place where Vader and Viceroy Gunray stood toe-to-toe near the doorway of the room.
The smile vanished from his face, as it did from the faces of the others around him, as he saw the brilliant crimson blade that protruded from Nute Gunray's back. They sat in utter, stunned silence, and he felt a wave of terror sweep over him as he saw the haunting, yellow eyes that glared out at Gunray's trembling body from underneath Vader's hood.
Nute Gunray struggled to breath, as the incredible heat from Vader's crimson blade coursed through his body; he looked up, slowly, at the haunting yellow eyes that glared at him, piercing his very soul as cleanly as Vader's weapon had penetrated his body.
"You really should work on your manners, Viceroy," Vader growled, as a sinister smile spread across his face. "You're really quite rude. It's going to get you into trouble some day."
The other Separatist leaders watched in horror as Darth Vader suddenly withdrew his blade from Gunray's trembling body, and then took a step back and watched as the Trade Federation Viceroy collapsed onto the hard, cold floor.
"Lord Vader," Passel stammered, his breath beginning to come in short, ragged gasps as he watched the dark clad Sith take a step toward them, "What have you done? What is the meaning of this?"
"I believe I've made my meaning quite plain, Chairman," Vader said, his crimson blade glowing brightly at his side as he took another step closer to the table as those around it began to scramble out of their chairs in fear. "I'm afraid that my master regrets to inform you that the terms of our agreement have changed."
Vader watched, with a great deal of satisfaction, as Wat Tambor suddenly ran toward the two doors behind him; Vader turned around quickly, stretching out his hand, and he smiled as the doors slammed shut just as Tambor reached them, and he watched as the Techno Union foreman tugged at the door's handles frantically.
Tambor turned around, and he watched with a sense of growing terror as Vader took several steps toward him; he felt his knees begin to buckle, and he slid slowly down toward the floor in fear as Vader approached him, raising his brilliant, crimson blade over his head.
The last thing he heard was the terror-filled screams of his companions, as they suddenly realized that none of them would ever leave this room alive.
Anakin cut the ship's engines, and the ship jolted hard as it dropped the last two or three feet onto its landing gear. He reached over and punched the control switch on the console in front of him, and he and Obi-Wan both struggled to free themselves from their harnesses as they heard the ramp at the back of the ship begin to open.
Anakin had sensed the terrible tremor a few moments earlier; he knew Vader was in there, and he could feel the fear and terror that surged through the Force from the massive stone structure that lay a short distance ahead of them.
"He's in there, Master," Anakin said, drawing his weapon with his right hand as he and Obi-Wan leapt from their seats and started to run toward the ramp at the back of the ship. "We've got to hurry."
They both stopped, for an instant, raising their arms and shielding their faces as they felt the fine dust begin to pepper their skin as they reached the top of the ramp.
Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes, looking out across the dusty, windblown landscape, as he felt the fine dust stinging his eyes. "Lovely planet," he shouted, over the continual roar of wind and thunder that filled the air. "Remind me to come back and build a vacation home here when all of this is over."
"Remember the old stories that the archive librarian used to tell the padawans at night, about that terrible place where the Sith first came from?" Anakin shouted, looking back at Obi-Wan.
"Yes," Obi-Wan said, nodding his head and looking out at the angry, violent planet.
"I think we found it," Anakin shouted, and they both stood for a moment, looking through the swirling clouds of dust and ash at the violent, primordial landscape in front of them.
They both bolted down the ramp, their weapons held tightly in their hands as the blades of their weapons blazed forth, glowing brightly in the thick, dark air as they ran through the thick, swirling clouds of dust; Anakin lifted his arm to his face, shielding his mouth and nose with the sleeve of his tunic, as the sickening smell of sulfur filled his nostrils as he ran. He looked up, through his narrowed eyes, and he could see the towering plumes of lava that erupted from the volcanic vent that lay far behind the massive stone structure. The ground literally shook beneath their feet as they ran, and the air was filled with the rumble of the thunder that ripped through the sky as the massive plumes of ash drew huge bolts of lighting from the thick clouds above them.
The din was almost deafening; the sound of the almost continual thunder and the planet's strong wind filled their ears as they both ran, as fast as they could, toward the massive stone structure that lay several hundred meters away from them in the distance, toward the dark evil that they had followed halfway across the quadrant.
Padmé lifted her arm to her face, as the Destiny's entry ramp began to drop slowly toward the surface.
She looked out, with a sense of disbelief, at the terrible, angry landscape; she glanced over for an instant, to the ship that rested several dozen meters from her. She could see it's interior lights glowing brightly, and she looked out toward the rocky outcropping not far from them as Threepio shuffled quickly up and stood beside her as the sound of the wind and thunder filled the Destiny's cabin.
Padmé's eyes searched the landscape frantically, and she felt her heart leap in her chest as her eyes focused on the familiar, brilliant white shaft of light; she narrowed her eyes, just as the swirling dust cleared for a moment, and she watched as Anakin and Obi-Wan made their way up the long path toward the entrance to the massive stone structure ahead of her.
"Anakin!" Padmé shouted, as loudly as she could, over the din of wind and thunder. She raised her arm over her face again, as another gust of wind whipped by her.
"Anakin!" she shouted again, as she watched him and Obi-Wan disappear into the large, stone archway at the top of the path. It's no use, she thought to herself; he simply couldn't hear her.
"Threepio," Padmé said, turning her determined face toward her companion, "You and Artoo stay here. I'll call you on the comlink if I need you."
"Please, Mistress Padmé," Threepio pleaded with her again, as she threw the hood of her dark blue cloak up over her head and pulled it tight around her, "stay here with Artoo and I until Master Ani returns."
"I'll be back soon," Padmé said, as she took a step down the ramp and turned to look at him again. "Stay here with the ship."
Threepio shuffled to the edge of the ramp, waving his metal arms frantically as he watched her turn and run down the ramp and toward the stone structure several hundred meters from them. "Please, Mistress Padmé!" Threepio shouted anxiously, "Come back!"
Artoo rolled up beside his tall, metal companion, and he whistled sadly as he watched Padmé's dark blue cloak wave wildly in the strong wind as she ran toward the massive stone archway where she had seen Anakin and Obi-Wan disappear into the darkness.
"What have we done, Artoo?" Threepio said, turning and looking at his little companion helplessly, as they both watched their mistress run into the darkness. "We never should have let her come here. Master Ani told us to look after her, and now…"
Threepio paused, as he looked up and watched her again for another moment.
"What have we done?" he said, as another bolt of lightning lit the sky, sending another wave of thunder rolling across the angry, violent landscape.
Passel Argente's breath came in short, terrified gasps as he looked up at the dark, figure standing over him; he looked up, into Darth Vader's cold, unfeeling, eyes as he brought the tip of his humming, crimson blade close to Passel's terrified face.
"You crawl just like the worm you are, Chairman," Darth Vader said, watching with a dark satisfaction as the once haughty Separatist leader retreated along the hard, stone floor in front of him. "Much better than your companions. But I'm afraid that this time there's no hole for you to crawl into."
His companions were dead, and he glanced over at their bodies that lay strewn around the floor of the cold stone chamber. "Pl… please, Lord Vader," the terrified chairman stammered, his voice trembling violently with fear as he spoke, "I beg you, listen to me."
"Whatever your master's pay… paying you," he said, inching himself backwards, as Vader's crimson blade drew closer to his face, "I'll pay you triple. Please don't kill me, I beg you," he said, shaking his head slowly as he looked up in terror at the ominous, dark figure that towered over him. "Just… just let me leave here alive, and I… I swear, I'll make you an extremely rich man."
"Paying me?" Vader laughed, as he looked down at Argente's terrified face. "My good Chairman," he said with a sinister laugh as a wide, evil grin spread across his face, "You insult me."
The smile on Vader's face instantly vanished, and Passel felt his blood run cold as he saw the look of cold hatred and contempt that replaced it. "Do you think I'm just some common bounty hunter that can be bargained with?" Vader asked angrily, as he brought his blade even closer to Argente's terrified face, watching him with a sadistic satisfaction as he continued to inch back away from him, a look of abject terror on his face.
"I assure you, Chairman," Vader said, nodding his head as his eyes began to glow fiercely as he summoned the power of the Dark Side that flowed so freely though him, "I'm doing this out of the goodness of my heart."
The chairman of the Corporate Alliance shook his head slowly, lifting his arm up defensively in front of his face as he felt Vader's icy stare burn through him as the Sith lord slowly raised the saber in his hand up beside him.
"And if it's any consolation, Chairman," Vader said, as he raised his weapon, squeezing the hilt of his glowing, humming saber tightly in his hand as he glared down at the doomed Separatist leader, "My Master, Chancellor Palpatine, sends his regards."
Vader's evil smile returned, as he paused and looked down at the terrified, trembling man before him, as he saw the look of disbelief flash through Argente's terror-filled eyes as he realized, finally, that he had been played for little more than a fool. "I'll tell him you send yours, as well."
Argente's terrified scream echoed through the chamber, as Vader's crimson blade flashed brightly and came crashing down on him.
Anakin and Obi-Wan both slid to a stop in the dark stone hallway; they both felt a cold chill run down their spines, as they heard the terrified scream echo off of the roughly hewn stone walls, and then fade slowly into the darkness around them.
They both looked at each other for a moment, breathing hard, and then Obi-Wan lifted his hand and pointed toward the juncture in the hallway just ahead of them. "It sounded like it came from down there," he said between quick, deep breaths, glancing quickly back at Anakin.
Anakin nodded his head, as he took several deep breaths of his own; the long sprint from their ship to the complex, through the thick, putrid air had been hard, even for a Jedi. "Let's go," he panted, as he placed his hand on Obi-Wan's back and nudged him ahead.
They both bolted down the hallway again, toward the juncture just ahead of them; the tunnel split at that point, the path to the right leading into a small, round chamber of some kind, and the one to the left winding up through another narrow passageway. They paused, only for a second, as they glanced into the small chamber, and, finding it empty, they both ran up the narrow passageway, the blades of their weapons illuminating the stone walls as they ran.
The familiar hiss filled the blood stained chamber, and Darth Vader looked down and watched as the crimson blade of his weapon disappeared into the smooth, metal hilt in his right hand. He looked up from Passel Argente's now lifeless body, and looked around the now silent room.
"My Master said you were a vicious, evil man, Chairman," Vader said, as he lifted the hilt of his weapon up in front of him, admiring it as he wiped several drops of blood from the handle with his gloved hand, "just like your companions."
"I for one will sleep better tonight, knowing that scoundrels like yourselves aren't out there traipsing about the galaxy, preying on innocent people," Vader sighed, as he looked up from his weapon and down at Argente's lifeless body again.
"Well, Chairman," Vader said, his eyes quickly scanning the room once more as he surveyed his horrible handiwork, "I'd say that this pretty much concludes our business."
Vader returned the weapon in his hand to his belt, and then pulled his cloak back over it, looking down at Argente's body one last time. "Now if you'll excuse me, Chairman," he said with sadistic grin, "I've other business to attend to."
He turned around and, laughing under his breath, he walked quickly back toward the doorway that lead into the long dark tunnel. His boots echoed off the hard stone walls, and he stretched his hand out in front of him; the doors flung open wide, and with his heartless, cold laugh still echoing through the chamber, he stepped through the doors and out into the hallway.
Vader had just barely stepped into the hallway through the doors, when he stopped, instantly; he turned to his left as he heard them, and a look of shock and surprise spread across his hooded face as he saw the two Jedi Knights round the corner a short distance from him. He instinctively took a step back, watching as their boots slid on the stone floor a short distance as they stopped abruptly in front of him, the combined glow of their weapon's blades filling the dim hallway with a blue-white light.
Anakin had prepared himself for this moment; he had seen this face, almost every time he closed his eyes, since that moment when he had first beheld it onboard the Imperial Hand. He closed his eyes, just for a moment, and drew his thoughts inside himself, focusing on what Padmé had told him, that night he had woken from that terrible nightmare.
There's only one Anakin Skywalker. He's my husband, and he's my life. You can't clone that.
Anakin reached deeply into the Force that flowed through him, and he held tight to Padmé's words, and his love for her, as he struggled to push back the cold chill that tried to overtake him as he saw those familiar, haunting yellow eyes staring back at him from underneath that thick hood.
Obi-Wan could only imagine what this was like for Anakin; he had prepared himself, or at least he thought he had, for what he knew that they would face. He knew who Vader was, and where he had come from; but, as his eyes finally beheld the face that glared out at him from the dim light beneath that thick, dark hood, as the nightmare suddenly became stark reality, he felt the one emotion sweep over him that he hadn't expected;
Fear.
Time seemed to stop as Obi-Wan stared at Vader's face; it was Anakin's, but it then again, it wasn't. The features were similar, but the face that stared back at him carried a cold rage, a blind, unfeeling hatred that he could never have imagined ever seeing in the face of his friend. It was a twisted, cold and heartless face, and it unnerved him, greatly, as he looked at the nightmarish apparition before him. He took a deep breath, reaching into the Force as deeply as he could, as he sought desperately to calm himself.
"Well, well," Vader said, as he turned slowly and faced the two Jedi who stood a short distance from him, placing his hands on the belt at his waist. "Isn't this a surprise."
Anakin swallowed hard, as he felt that chill run down his spine as he heard that hauntingly familiar voice address them. He said nothing, and he squeezed the hilt of his weapon tightly, bringing it up in front of him, it's brilliant, white blade humming loudly as he stared at Vader.
"Anakin Skywalker," Vader said, as he saw the familiar face looking back at him, illuminated in the glow of Anakin's white blade. "How wonderful to see you again."
"And you would be Obi-Wan Kenobi," Vader said, as he turned his glowing, yellow eyes toward Obi-Wan as he stood at Anakin's side. "I expected that I'd find the both of you together," Vader said, nodding his head as a sinister grin spread across his face. "Thought I must admit, I'm a bit surprised to find you both here, now."
"I don't know how you found me," Vader smirked, as he raised his gloved hands and clapped them together, slowly, several times, "but bravo, indeed."
"It's over, Vader," Obi-Wan said, as he brought his own blade up close beside him, it's bright blue blade humming loudly in the dark, stone hallway.
"Over?" Vader said, a look of feigned surprise spreading across his face; he laughed, for a long moment. "Master Kenobi," he said, finally, laughing as he spoke and shaking his head as he looked back at Obi-Wan, "It's only begun."
"You're coming back to Coruscant with us, Vader," Anakin said, a look of grim determination on his face as he glared at Vader's hooded form. "Drop your weapon."
Darth Vader turned and looked back at Anakin's determined face; he snorted, and then stared at Anakin for a long moment. "And if I refuse to come quietly?" he said, after a long pause, tilting his head as he turned his body to face Anakin's head on.
"You're coming back with us," Anakin said, nodding his head slowly, as he glared directly into Vader's cold, unfeeling eyes. "You can either walk, or we'll carry you," Anakin said firmly, nodding his head at the Sith who glared back at him. "It's your choice."
"I see," Vader said, nodding his head, and looking back at Obi-Wan for a moment, studying him.
"I make you a counter proposal, Anakin," Vader said with an evil smirk, finally, as he lifted his left hand from his waist and gestured at Obi-Wan. "You face me, right now, right here, alone," Vader said, as Anakin listened intently to him, "and I'll let your friend here live, along with everyone else you care about."
Anakin glanced back at Obi-Wan as he suddenly spoke. "No deal, Vader," Obi-Wan said firmly, shaking his head as he spun his blade quickly at his side and brought it up in front of him. "Walk out, or we carry you out," he growled back at the Sith in front of him, watching as the sadistic smirk disappeared from Vader's face.
"Either way," Obi-Wan said, as Anakin turned his eyes back to Vader and spun his own blade quickly at his side as he and his old master both took a step toward Vader's dark form, "You're going to have to deal with both of us."
Vader nodded his head, and he reached down with his right hand, tossing the edge of his cloak back. "Very well," he said with a deep sigh, shaking his head as he reached down and retrieved his weapon from his belt. "I tried to be charitable," he said, as he swung the hilt of his weapon up in front of him and quickly ignited the brilliant, crimson blade, looking at it admiringly as he brought it up close to his face. "But have it your way."
"A thing of beauty, isn't it?' Vader said, as he turned his eyes from his crimson blade and looked back at the two Jedi, watching as Anakin and Obi-Wan raised their blades up defensively.
"By the way, Anakin," Vader said, as the sadistic smile on his face grew wider as he glared back at the young Jedi in front of him, "I think Master Windu thought I was you, when he asked me to help him in the Temple that afternoon," he said, as he moved his blade to his side a bit, so that he could see Anakin's face better.
"You should have seen the look on his face when I ran this through his chest," Vader said with a laugh. "It was priceless. I really think he thought I was you," he laughed, as he glared directly into Anakin's eyes. "Just like all those others in the Temple did, just before they died."
Obi-Wan had heard enough; he could feel the same wave of anger brewing deep within him that he had felt when he fought General Grievous. "Shut up," Obi-Wan shouted, and he started to take a step toward Vader, as he felt the wave of anger begin to sweep over him as he listened to Vader goad Anakin unmercilessly.
Obi-Wan paused, and he glanced over at Anakin's determined face as he suddenly felt his young friend's hand on his arm; Anakin never took his eyes off of Vader. "Don't listen to him, Master," Anakin said quietly, as he squeezed Obi-Wan's forearm tightly. "We'll take him both together," he said, nodding his head as he felt Obi-Wan begin to push back the wave of anger that Vader had stirred in him. "Left or right?" Anakin asked, as he glanced back at his old mentor.
"Right sounds good to me," Obi-Wan said, as he glared back at Vader as the Sith lowered his weapon and stared coldly at them.
"Good," Anakin said with a nod, as they both took a step toward Darth Vader, as the Sith took several steps back from them and grasped his weapon tightly in his gloved hands. "You always did like the right better."
Darth Vader grit his teeth and swung his blade up as quickly as he could, as the two Jedi Knights suddenly leapt toward him, their blades flashing brightly, as they began to rain blow after blow down on him.
The narrow stone hallway was filled with the sound of crashing, crackling sabers; Anakin and Obi-Wan worked together, their blades flashing in perfect concert with one another, as they drove Vader back, steadily, toward the large chamber at the end of the hallway behind them.
Padmé stopped, just inside the massive, stone archway that lead to the narrow, dimly lit tunnel; she coughed several times, hard, as she covered her mouth and took several long, deep breaths as she leaned against the hard, stone wall for a moment, trying to catch her breath.
She fought back the urge to gag, as the sickening smell of sulfur filled her lungs; the air was clearer here, inside the chamber, but only barely. She closed her eyes, as she felt another wave of pain clutch at her lower back, and then travel to her stomach.
It can't be, Padmé thought to herself, shaking her head slowly as she placed her hands back on her round stomach and leaned back against the wall and took several deep breaths, squeezing her eyes shut tightly. It's not time yet. You're just tired, that's all. Once you and Anakin go home, you'll be fine.
She stood there, quietly, for a moment, until she felt the pain begin to subside again; she opened her eyes suddenly, though, as she heard the faint, familiar sound echo down the hallway to her from the distance. It was very faint, but unmistakable, and she turned and looked down the dim hallway as she felt the dark tremor travel through her.
"Anakin," Padmé whispered softly, and she turned and ran, as quickly as she could, down the dimly lit tunnel toward the sound of the sabers that clashed in the distance.
Vader stumbled backwards, through the opening of the tunnel and onto the wide, metal catwalk; the thick, metal cables that anchored the massive, aging structure to the curving, stone ceiling above on one side groaned and creaked as Anakin and Obi-Wan leapt out onto it after him.
Vader caught his balance quickly, spinning around and swinging his blade back up just in time to catch Anakin's flashing white blade turn it aside.
The sound of their boots on the thick metal grating echoed around them as Vader lunged back at Anakin offensively, swinging his blade hard, and Anakin swung his blade first left, then right, deflecting both of the Sith's blows as he and Obi-Wan circled around Vader, one of them in front, one behind, as they both watched Vader's eyes flash as he glared at them both intently.
Anakin took several steps along the inside wall of the cavern as he circled around behind Vader, eyeing him intently as the Sith lord glared back at him. The sound of heavy machinery filled Anakin's ears as he glanced over, past the massive cables that anchored the catwalk to the ceiling high above him, toward the droid factory that stretched out far below them. His suspicions about this place had been confirmed, as he looked quickly at the massive conveyors that moved above and below the catwalk where they stood.
He could see the thick slabs of metal that moved along the conveyors over his head; he glanced down quickly through the grating under his boots, and he could feel the heat from the massive smelting ovens below them as he watched the brilliant orange molten metal bubble and spark angrily as it was poured into the molds that proceeded alongside the huge, red-hot ovens.
He turned his eyes back to Vader, watching as the Sith lord turned, suddenly, and swung his blade hard at Obi-Wan, raining a series of furious blows down on him. Obi-Wan swung his blade smoothly, turning each blow aside, and Vader backed off, turning his eyes back toward Anakin again, as the two Jedi Knights circled around him as they moved closer to the center of the catwalk.
"Impressive," Vader said, nodding his head as he took several quick, deep breaths. "I wouldn't have expected the two of you to last this long," he said, as he glanced back at Obi-Wan, and then back toward Anakin again. "You two are doing much better than your poor, dead companions from the Council did."
"You talk an awful lot," Anakin said disgustedly, shaking his head as he leapt forward, his brilliant white blade whirling in perfect, symmetrical motions as he lashed out offensively at Vader, swinging his blade down against him, over and over again.
Vader reached deeply into the dark side as he struggled to turn aside Anakin's furious attack; he swung his blade hard and fast, as he struggled to turn aside Anakin's lightning quick blows, and then spun quickly as Obi-Wan countered with his own offensive, raining blow after blow down on the Sith lord.
Their coordinated attack was beginning to wear on him, and Vader reached down, as deeply as he could, into the dark side of the Force, as he struggled to keep the two Jedi Knights at bay.
He had underestimated these two. The other Jedi that he had faced, he had faced as individuals; these two fought as one, and the confident smirk on his face disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, as he struggled to turn their perfectly timed attacks away. He realized, now, that if he didn't do something, and do something quickly, that these two could, and very likely would, destroy him.
Vader brought his blade around quickly as Obi-Wan lashed out at him again, reaching deeply into the dark side as he caught Obi-Wan's blade with his own, and then pushed the Jedi Master away from him as hard as he could. He looked up quickly, and extended his gloved hand toward the large stack of metal that moved slowly on the conveyor about ten meters above them.
"Master! Above you!" Anakin shouted, as his eyes followed Vader's outstretched hand and saw the large pile of metal shift violently on the conveyor.
Obi-Wan looked up, just in time to see the massive pile of jagged metal ingots fly off of the conveyor and plummet straight toward him. He leapt back, as hard as he could, just as the first of the heavy projectiles struck the metal catwalk with a deafening crash; he stumbled backwards, as he felt the catwalk buck and shake violently as the aging structure groaned under the incredible weight and impact of the thick chunks of metal. Obi-Wan felt his legs contact the edge of the low, wire railing, and he reached over and took hold of the thick suspension cable beside him as he struggled to catch his balance and keep himself from falling off the trembling catwalk.
Taking advantage of Obi-Wan's momentary vulnerability, Vader stretched out his hand toward him and, reaching deeply into the dark side of the Force, he pushed, as hard as he could, just as Obi-Wan struggled to catch his balance as he teetered precariously at the edge of the catwalk.
Obi-Wan felt the incredible wave of Force energy strike him; he struggled to hold onto the thick suspension cable, but the incredible strength of Vader's Force push tore his fingers from the cable, and Anakin watched, helplessly, as his friend and mentor was thrown back over the railing and down toward the smelting ovens far below them.
"Ooooff!" Obi-Wan shouted in pain, as he struck the narrow service catwalk hard; he had fallen about fifteen meters, and the impact of his body on the hard, rusty metal knocked the wind cleanly out of him. He struggled to catch his breath, as he looked up above him; he could see Anakin's saber flashing brightly as he and Vader fought furiously on the large catwalk above him.
His mind flashed back, for an instant, to that moment nearly fifteen years ago, when he and his master Qui-Gon had faced Sidious' old apprentice, Darth Maul, on Naboo.
Not again, Obi-Wan thought to himself, as he watched his friend battle furiously against the Sith Lord who attacked him. He had fallen, then, much like he had now; that fall had cost his Master his life, as he had been forced to face the Dark Lord's servant alone. If he had only been there with him…
"Not again, damn it," Obi-Wan said angrily, shaking his head as he struggled to get to find his breath and get to his feet. "That's not going to happen again. Not this time."
Vader turned around quickly, just as Anakin lunged at him; he spun sideways, just barely turning Anakin's blade aside, as the brilliant white blade pierced the edge of his thick, black cloak. He stepped back, allowing Anakin's momentum to carry him past him, and he turned his body and kicked out at Anakin's legs with his boots, as hard as he could.
Anakin felt himself begin to fall, as Vader's boot stripped his legs out from under him; he grimaced with pain as he struck the catwalk hard, and then he rolled quickly back onto his feet and spun around as fast he could.
Anakin stood up, slowly; he looked up toward Vader again, just in time to see the heavy metal ingot that Vader hurled at him approaching him at incredible speed.
Anakin raised his hand, and he managed to catch the heavy piece of metal in time to slow it down somewhat before it struck him; it caught him squarely in the chest, and he cried out in pain as he felt several of his ribs give way as the impact of the hard, heavy projectile sent him flying backwards and crashing to the catwalk.
Anakin saw an incredible explosion of stars as his head struck the unforgiving metal structure; his weapon clattered to the metal grating beside him, its blade disappearing into the handle as it powered itself off, and he watched the ceiling above him spin wildly as he struggled to stay conscious.
He opened his eyes, looking around frantically, as the room spun around him, fading to black, and back again; he caught sight of Vader, for an instant, and then he closed his eyes and cried out again in pain as he felt the broken ribs in his chest grate painfully against one another as he tried to move.
The pain in his right side was incredible, and he could feel the despair that dogged him as he opened his eyes and glanced back, his head swimming, toward Vader. He struggled to lift himself up, and he struggled to raise his left hand, reaching for his other saber as the Sith Lord walked over toward him, his cloak billowing around his boots as he approached him.
Anakin could feel the darkness closing in around him, as he looked up and watched, with a growing sense of hopelessness, as Vader stared down at him for a long moment, and then started to raise his weapon up over his head.
"So much for the great Anakin Skywalker," Vader said with a laugh, as a sadistic smile began to spread across his face.
"Hang on, Anakin," Obi-Wan said, as he stood up; he could see Vader approach Anakin, could see the crimson blade glowing in his gloved hand through the grated floor of the catwalk above him. He fixed his eyes on the railing's edge far above him, and reached as deeply into the Force as he ever had; he felt the incredible surge of power begin to flow through him and, bending his knees slightly, he jumped, as hard as he could, rocketing off of the service platform and up toward the catwalk above him.
Anakin felt himself jump, as Darth Vader suddenly lurched violently, his terrible howl of pain filling the chamber around him as he screamed in pain.
He saw the brilliant orange laser blast, just as it struck Vader cleanly in his left shoulder. He winced and recoiled instinctively, as he watched the force of the blast spin the Sith Lord around hard and knock him backwards across the catwalk and hard into the railing behind him.
Darth Vader screamed again in pain, his weapon clattering to the floor in front of him, as he turned and looked back across the catwalk toward the tunnel's entrance; he watched, in pain and utter amazement, as he saw the young woman who stepped quickly out onto the catwalk, the blaster in her hand leveled directly at him as she took several steps out from the tunnel's entrance and stared coldly at him.
"Get away from him, you son of a bitch," Padmé snapped angrily, as she walked slowly out on the catwalk toward him, keeping her blaster trained on him as she walked.
Anakin looked over, in disbelief, as her familiar voice suddenly shocked him back toward full consciousness. "Padmé?" he said, as he reached up and clutched his chest in pain as he tried to lift himself up on his elbows; the broken ribs in his right side sent a searing wave of pain through his body as he struggled to focus his eyes on her as she took another step toward him, never taking her eyes off of Vader.
Vader snapped his head around to his left, as he heard Obi-Wan's boots contact the catwalk behind him.
Obi-Wan looked up, as he caught his balance on the catwalk; he stared, in complete and utter disbelief, as Padmé turned her eyes toward him for a split second, as she saw him land on the catwalk not far from her.
Vader turned his eyes back toward her, instantly; her momentary distraction was all that he needed, and he stretched out his hand toward her as her blaster moved off of him, for just a split second.
"Padmé!" Obi-Wan shouted, reaching down and taking his weapon from his belt again, as he saw Vader stretch his hand out toward her. "Get out of here," he shouted, as he started toward her. "Now!"
Padmé never had time to respond; she felt an incredible pressure at her throat, just as if two enormous, invisible hands wrapped themselves around her neck and began to choke her; her weapon clattered to the floor as she reached up, instinctively, clutching her hands to her throat as she struggled to breath as she felt herself being lifted off of the metal catwalk.
The terrible tremor of fear that surged through her heart jarred Anakin back into full consciousness, like a white hot iron, and he turned and watched, horrified, as Padmé was suddenly picked up and thrown, with incredible force, toward the hard, stone wall behind her.
"Padmé!" Anakin screamed, as he watched, helplessly, as his beloved Padmé cried out in pain as she struck the unforgiving rock wall behind her, hard, and then slumped down onto the catwalk and lay there, motionless.
An incredible pain ripped through his body, and his heart, as Anakin rolled onto his side and struggled to stand up; the vivid image from the dream that he had had that night, in Obi-Wan's apartment was now all too real, as he looked at Padmé's helpless, motionless body lying on the floor a short distance from him.
Vader stretched out his hand toward his weapon, and Obi-Wan watched as the shiny, silver weapon leapt from the floor and into his outstretched hand. Vader turned around and glared at him, for a long moment, as Anakin struggled to get to his feet; Obi-Wan watched, with a sense of helplessness, as Vader turned and started to run along the catwalk toward the far side of the chamber.
Obi-Wan looked at him for another second or two, and then he bolted to Padmé's side, just as Anakin stumbled toward her and dropped to his knees beside her, scooping her up in his arms.
The pain that tore through his shoulder was excruciating; he screamed again, in pain and anger, as he placed his weapon back on his belt and stopped for a moment, turning and looking back behind him as he reached the tunnel on the far side of the catwalk.
He could see the two Jedi Knights, as they knelt beside the young woman who had fired on him; it was the break that he needed, and he turned around and, stumbling several times from the pain that surged through his shoulder, he started down the tunnel and toward the rear exit to the complex. He reached down, as he walked, and took the small transmitter from his belt; he pressed the small, red button near its center, and then returned it to his belt. He glanced back at the two Jedi once more, and a pained smile spread across his face, as he turned and continued into the narrow, dark tunnel.
"Padmé!" Anakin called frantically, as he cradled Padmé tightly in his arms, reaching up and brushing her hair out of her face with his hand as he looked at her seemingly lifeless face.
Obi-Wan dropped to his knees beside them; he felt an incredible wave of despair sweep over him, as he looked up at Anakin's frantic, frightened face, as he pulled her limp body close to him.
The pain that coursed through his own body was incredible, but he ignored it, pushed it away, as he focused his attention completely on Padmé. "Padmé, please," he pleaded, as he gently patted her cheek with his hand, "Wake up, Angel," he said, shaking his head in disbelief as he looked at her still, motionless body. "Wake up, please."
Anakin felt his breath catch in his throat, as Padmé's eyes suddenly fluttered for a moment; he felt his heart stop, though, as the incredible wave of pain that tore through her body suddenly swept over him, and he held her tightly as she suddenly squeezed her eyes shut and cried out in pain.
"Padmé," Anakin pleaded again, softly, as he patted her cheek again as her agonized cries subsided for a moment, "Talk to me, Padmé," he said, shaking his head frantically as he stroked her cheek gently. "Look at me, Angel. Please."
"Ani," Padmé moaned softly, as she grimaced in pain once again, and then opened her eyes and looked up at him, apologetically. "Oh, Ani," she said, as tears began to well up in her beautiful brown eyes, "I'm so sorry," she said, reaching up and touching his cheek with her left hand, as she clung tightly to his arm with her right.
"I'm so sorry, Ani," she said, as she grimaced in pain again, and then looked up at him. "I never should have come," she said, as a tear trickled slowly down her cheek. "I'm so sorry. I just couldn't…"
She paused and winced again, as another wave of pain swept through her body. "I just couldn't let you come here by yourself."
"It's okay, Padmé," Anakin said, laying his head gently on her forehead and pulling her as close to him as he possibly could. Obi-Wan felt his heart ache, more so than he could ever remember, as he watched the tear that trickled slowly down Anakin's cheek as he held her tightly. "It's okay, Padmé," he said quietly, as he clung tightly to her. "I know why you came."
Obi-Wan reached over and placed his hand on Padmé's, closing his eyes as he reached out and touched the life force that flowed through her. He recoiled, instinctively, as he felt the incredible pain that coursed through her body. "She's hurt, Anakin," Obi-Wan said quietly, as Anakin turned his distraught face toward him. "Badly. We need to get her out of here."
"Ohh, Ani," Padmé sobbed, as she squeezed her eyes shut again, as another wave of pain swept through her, "Something's wrong," she whispered, as she turned her weak, tear-filled eyes toward his agonized face. "Something's wrong," she said again, as she squeezed her eyes shut tightly and cried out in pain again.
"OOOoohhhh," she cried, squeezing Anakin's arm tightly as Anakin looked up at Obi-Wan helplessly. "Oh, please," Padmé sobbed, as she clung to Anakin as tightly as she could. "Not now, please, it's not time."
Anakin knew, instantly, what was wrong. "The twins," Anakin said, shaking his head slowly as he looked helplessly at Obi-Wan. "I think they're coming."
Obi-Wan felt an incredible wave of rage and anger brewing inside of him; he watched Anakin for a long moment, as he laid his head on Padmé's again and held her tightly as she moaned from the pain that coursed through her body. He turned and looked back down the hallway where Vader had disappeared an instant before, as he felt that wave of anger growing stronger, deep inside of him. He knew it was wrong, but he didn't care anymore; Vader wasn't leaving this planet alive, not if he could help it.
"Anakin," Obi-Wan said, turning and looking back at Anakin intently, "Get Padmé back to the ship. If I'm not back at the ship in fifteen minutes, then I want you to get her off this planet."
Anakin looked back at Obi-Wan; he saw the look of grim determination that flashed in Obi-Wan's eyes as he looked at him, and he knew exactly where he was going, and what he was going to do.
Anakin looked at his old mentor for a long moment, and then he turned and looked back across the catwalk; Obi-Wan turned and watched, as Anakin's lightsaber leapt from the metal floor and flew back into Anakin's outstretched hand.
Obi-Wan looked down at the weapon in Anakin's hand as he held it out toward him. "Here," Anakin said, as Obi-Wan looked back up at him, taking Anakin's saber from his hand as he offered it to him. "Just be sure you bring it back to me, okay?" Anakin said, as he looked at Obi-Wan intently and nodded his head, slowly.
They both looked each other for a long moment, and then they turned and looked back at Padmé as she cried out in pain again. "Remember," Obi-Wan said, as Anakin hugged her tightly, and looked back up at him. "Fifteen minutes, and then get her off this planet," he said. "Not a minute longer."
"Understood, Master," Anakin said, nodding his head, and he watched as Obi-Wan leapt to his feet and ran down the catwalk, as fast as Anakin had ever seen a Jedi move, toward the tunnel where Vader had disappeared only a moment before.
"Ooohhh," Padmé moaned again, and Anakin immediately turned his attention back to her, holding her tightly as he sensed the pain that coursed through her body as she squeezed his arm tightly.
"Just hang on, Angel," Anakin said, and then he closed his eyes and took a long, deep breath, as he reached deeply into the Force, summoning all of his strength. He grit his teeth hard, and he pulled Padmé up into his arms and, holding her tightly, he stood up.
Anakin yelled in pain as he struggled to his feet; his broken ribs screamed at him, sending waves of searing pain coursing though his body as the broken bones grated against each other as he stood up, and he staggered backwards into the stone wall behind him.
He stood there for a long moment, his breath coming fast and ragged, as he fought back the waves of searing pain that surged through his body. He looked down for just a moment at Padmé's agonized face, as she clung tightly to him, and he could feel her body trembling as another wave of pain swept through her.
"Hang on, baby," Anakin said again, as he pushed the terrible pain that tore through his own body down inside him with all of his might. He took a long deep breath and, leaning forward away from the wall, he staggered forward for a couple of steps, and then started back across the catwalk toward the tunnel, as he cradled Padmé's body tightly in his arms and made his way slowly back out of the facility and back toward the ship.
"You'd better hold tight, Master Yoda," Bail said, as he reached up over his head and prepared to disengage the Millennium Falcon's hyperdrive engines. "We're switching back to sublight engines now," he said, as Yoda turned and looked up at him from his seat in the copilot's station. "It's probably going to be a little bumpy, coming out of hyperspace this close to the planet."
The Falcon had turned out to be all that her builders had promised Bail, and then some; Yoda was rarely impressed with technology of any kind, yet he would have had to admit that even he felt a sense of amazement as he watched Bail prepare to drop them out of hyperspace as they approached the angry, reddish-black planet. He had traveled billions of miles across the vast expanse of space in his lifetime, yet never before had he traveled so far so quickly.
Yoda held tightly to the armrest of the copilot's seat, as he turned and looked back out of the Falcon's smoothly curved cockpit windows; the ship did indeed jolt, hard, as they impacted the outer edge of Mustafar's massive magnetic field at just under the speed of light. He glanced over and watched as Bail pushed the impulse engine throttle levers at the center of the console forward as he powered up the Falcon's powerful impulse engines, and then he turned his deeply worried expression back toward the windows, watching in silence as the stars that streaked by them quickly slipped back to brilliant points of light as the angry planet began to loom large in front of them.
"We should be entering the planet's atmosphere in less than five minutes," Bail said, as Yoda turned and looked back at him. Bail took a long, deep breath and sighed deeply, as he turned his inquisitive, worried face toward the Jedi Master beside him. "Now can you tell me what we're doing here?"
"Locate Anakin's companion, we must," Yoda sighed, after taking a long, deep breath. "Imperative it is, that we find her," he said, as he turned and looked back out of the window in front of him.
Bail looked back at Yoda, shocked; the tiny Jedi Master hadn't shared much in the way of details on this trip. He had sat, meditating quietly, ever since they had made the jump into hyperspace after leaving Coruscant. "Anakin's companion?" Bail said, a mixture of disbelief and concern spreading across his face. "You mean Padmé?"
"Yes," Yoda said, nodding his head slowly, as he continued to look thoughtfully out of the window ahead of him.
"What in the devil is she doing here?" Bail asked, his voice betraying his deep concern as he spoke. "I thought she was on Naboo."
"She was," Yoda said quietly, as he turned his head slowly and looked back at Bail's puzzled, worried face, "But here now, she is," Yoda said, as he took another long, deep breath. "A long story, it is," Yoda sighed again. "But find her, we must."
"Why am I not surprised?" Bail sighed, as he turned and looked out of the window in front of him, watching the planet grow faster and faster in the Falcon's viewscreen as they approached it.
Bail didn't even try to mask the look of deep concern on his face as he turned and looked back at Yoda. "Mustafar's a big planet, Master Yoda," Bail said, reaching up and running his hand slowly through his thick, dark hair as he spoke. "Our sensors aren't going to tell us much, either, until we get closer to the planet's surface. Do we have any idea where to start looking for her?"
"Contacted her once before, you have," Yoda said, as he turned and looked intently back at Bail as he watched him from the pilot's seat. "Try again, I suggest you do."
Bail looked at Yoda for a long moment, and then he reached quickly down and retrieved the encryption key that Mace Windu had given him from his pocket. "There may not be anyone on her ship to receive the transmission, if she's out looking for him," Bail said, shaking his head as he popped the key into the slot of the Falcon's communication console in front of him and activated the transmitter. "We may be talking to no one."
Yoda watched as Bail tapped the display on the com station and engaged the transmitter. "We're hailing her now," Bail said with a nod, as he reached over and nudged the throttle levers forward again, pushing the Falcon's impulse engines to full power. "Hang on tight," he said, as he glanced back over toward Yoda again. "I'm starting our descent to the planet's surface."
Yoda squeezed the armrests on his chair tightly as, just as the Millennium Falcon trembled as they passed through the strongest layers of Mustafar's magnetic field, he felt himself begin to tremble, somewhat, as the wave of pain that traveled to him through the Force from both Anakin and Padmé suddenly shot through him. Yoda closed his eyes and sighed again, deeply; they were running out of time.
The sunlight glinted brightly off of the platinum silver hull of the Falcon as she banked hard to her starboard side, and then disappeared quickly into the thick, angry atmosphere.
Threepio turned around quickly, as he heard Artoo's excited whistle echo through the Destiny's cabin; he watched the little astrodroid as he swung his dome toward him and continued to beep and whistle excitedly from his place at the com station.
"What is it, Artoo?" Threepio asked anxiously, as he shuffled across the cabin to Artoo's side. "Have you picked up anything at all from Mistress Padmé?"
The tall, silver droid cocked his metal head curiously, as Artoo let fly with another long string of whistles and clicks as he swung his sensor dome back toward the console in front of him. "An incoming transmission?" Threepio asked, as he turned and looked at the display on the com station where Artoo sat. "From who?"
Artoo swung his dome slowly back toward Threepio, as another long string of electronic speech filled the cabin. "Oh, my," Threepio said, snapping himself up straight and turning his electronic eyes toward the viewscreen in front of him. "In that case," he said, as he turned and nodded back at his little companion, "I suppose you'd better go ahead and answer his hail, Artoo."
Darth Vader's hand trembled, as he reached up and applied the medication that he had retrieved from his belt to his wounded shoulder; he winced and grit his teeth hard, as the cold, aerosol spray contacted his skin, and then he relaxed a bit, as the anesthetic began to dull the sharp, searing pain.
He flung the empty container down to the stone floor in the dark corner where he had concealed himself. This wasn't part of the plan, he thought to himself, as he moved his arm back and forth, slowly, as the medication continued to dull the pain. He reached down, quickly, and pulled the comlink from his belt, and then leaned back against the stone wall behind him as he pressed the button on its side and tied it in to the transmitter on his ship.
Vader listened in silence, for a long moment, as he waited for the return signal; he rolled the comlink over in his gloved hand nervously as he stared at the small, cylindrical device. Patience wasn't one of his stronger virtues, even when he waited to speak with his master, as he did now.
"Finally," Vader snorted under his breath, as he heard the comlink's two, bell-like tones as the channel opened.
"What is it, Lord Vader?" he heard Darth Sidious' voice ask from the tiny device in his hand, as he raised it up closer to his hooded face.
"The Separatist leaders are dead, my Lord," Vader said, his voice hushed somewhat, as he concealed himself in the shadows near the dark tunnel's exit. "Just as you commanded."
"You have done well, Lord Vader," Sidious replied, his voice small and distant over the comlink. "And the Jedi?"
"They are here, my Master," Vader replied, nodding his head as he spoke. "Just as you expected."
"Are you certain that it's Kenobi and Skywalker?" Sidious asked, as Vader listened intently.
"Yes, Master," Vader replied, as he grimaced and moved his shoulder gingerly as he spoke. "I'm certain of it. I have already engaged them once." Vader paused, as he felt the twinge of pain run through his wounded shoulder again. "And she's here with them."
Vader looked down at the comlink, as it fell silent for a long moment. "Are you sure?" he heard Darth Sidious ask, after a long pause.
"Yes, my Lord," Vader said, nodding his head again as he moved his shoulder gingerly. "Quite sure."
"Excellent," Sidious replied, his voice brightening. "Our trap is working better than even I could have foreseen. Activate the droids," Sidious said. "At once."
'I have already done so, my Lord," Vader nodded. "They should be moving to intercept them now."
Vader smiled as he heard Sidious' approving reply over the comlink. "Very good, Lord Vader," he said. "You are proving to be far more efficient than your predecessor."
"Thank you, my Master," Vader said with a smile, as he listened intently to his master's voice.
"Contact the three battalions of clone troopers at your command," Sidious said, as Vader listened to him intently. "Take no chances. None of them are to leave that planet alive, do you understand?"
"Yes, my Lord," Vader said, nodding his head affirmatively as he listened to his dark Master's command. "I'll contact them now."
"I want them destroyed, all of them," Sidious said, his voice laced with a dark, sinister anger. "Their ships, their droids, everything. Is that clear?"
"Very clear, my Master," Vader said, a sinister smile spreading across his hooded face, as he turned his glowing eyes back down the hallway behind him, watching intently as he heard what he thought were footsteps in the distance. "I'll contact you when our work here is complete."
"Very good, Lord Vader," Sidious said, as Vader turned and looked back at the comlink in his hand. "The end of the Jedi is at hand. I shall await your transmission with anticipation."
Vader heard the telltale tone as the channel went dead, and he tapped the tiny control pad on the comlink again, as he prepared to contact the clone ships that stood by, behind Mustafar's rocky moon on the far side of the planet, awaiting his command.
Artoo swung his sensor dome toward the Destiny's pilot's station, and he watched Threepio for a long moment, as his tall metal companion monitored the ship's radar system, watching as the Millenium Falcon's signal closed on them quickly.
Threepio was good at waiting; he, on the other hand, was more like his mistress. Artoo was adventurous, even by human standards, and he much preferred action to all of this waiting. He had grown used to the absence of the restraining bolt with which most droids were fitted, and he preferred to think of himself as more of a companion than a servant to Anakin and Padmé. Indeed, it was Padmé who had removed the humiliating device over a year ago, and Anakin had agreed with her.
"We trust you, Artoo," Padmé had said with a smile, as she had popped the bolt off as Anakin looked on, and Artoo had watched her as she tossed it into a drawer in the hangar. "You've saved our lives more than once," she had said, as she looked back at him approvingly and patted his smooth round dome affectionately. "You've always been there when we needed you," Padmé had said, as she and Anakin smiled down at him.
We trust you, Artoo.
Somehow, over the years, in the incredible mass of electronic impulses and pathways that made up his electronic brain, Artoo had learned what it meant to be a part of a family. Most droids would have bolted for freedom the minute that restraining bolt had been removed; he, on the other hand, had chosen to stay, though he hadn't been quite sure as to why at first. Maybe it was the fact that the two of them had given him the one thing that no one else had ever offered him, since the day that he first looked up and saw a human for the first time at the droid factory where he had been built.
They had given him a choice. They had trusted him. And he had no intention of letting them down.
Artoo swung his sensor dome back to the station in front of him, as he suddenly picked up the faint transmission; he spun the control wheels at his station with his data probe, quickly as he attempted to lock onto the transmission's source. It was faint, very faint indeed; whoever it was, they were trying to make sure that no one heard them, and if it hadn't been for the sensor modifications that he and Anakin had made to the Destiny's sensor array, he would never have heard it.
Artoo turned up the gain on the Destiny's array to maximum, and he listened intently, as his electronic ears began to pick up bits and pieces of the faint voices as he ran the crackling, popping signal through the ship's noise filter:
…of them are to leave the planet alive. Is… understood?
Understood, sir. We're getting underway now.
Lock in my ship… be able to find them there. I want all of… destroyed. Even their ships.
Yes, Lord Vad… should be there…. fifteen minutes.
Destroy them all. No exceptions…. that clear?
Very clear, Lord Vader.
Artoo swung his dome back toward Threepio, whistling anxiously, as the terrible realization of what he had just heard struck him; they were coming for them, whoever they were, and they had less than fifteen minutes to figure out what to do about it.
"What is it now, Artoo?" Threepio asked frustratedly, as he turned and shuffled back toward his little companion as the little astrodroid whistled excitedly, as he engaged the ship's transmitter and began to signal the comlink that Padmé had carried with her into the dark, sinister complex.
The pain that coursed through his side was incredible; Anakin stopped, just inside the narrow tunnel's exit, and he leaned back against the hard, stone wall and took several long, deep breaths, as he squeezed his eyes shut, tightly.
He could hear the comlink beeping in the pocket of Padmé's cloak, and he cradled her tightly in his arms as he slowly allowed himself to slide down the wall toward the hard stone floor. He leaned close to the rocky outcropping beside him, concealing them both in its shadow; they were just inside the entrance to the chamber that lead to the structure's exit and to their ship. He was exhausted, and he needed to rest, if only for a moment.
"OOowww!" Anakin moaned, softly, as he felt his broken ribs move again, sending another wave of pain through his body as he relaxed the muscles of his chest for just a moment. He leaned back against the wall, as he pulled Padmé closer to him so that he could see her face.
"How ya doin', Angel?" Anakin asked softly, as he reached over and brushed Padmé's long, brown hair from her eyes gently, as she opened her eyes and looked up at him weakly.
Anakin leaned down and kissed her gently on the forehead, as she moaned softly and blinked her eyes several times. "It hurts," Padmé moaned weakly, as she turned her tired, worried eyes back up and looked at Anakin's worried face. "I'm scared, Ani," she whispered, her voice trembling as she tried to speak. "I'm so scared…"
Anakin laid his head gently on hers, as he felt her arms tighten around his neck as she moaned again as another wave of pain swept through her body. "I know," Anakin said softly, as he reached down into the pocket of her cloak, searching for the comlink hidden in the thick, blue material. "So am I. I'll have you out of here in just a few minutes, I promise," he said, as he felt his hand close around the small device. "Just hang in here with me a little bit longer."
Anakin paused, and he smiled, softly, as he heard her tired, weary voice as she squeezed his neck again, tightly. "I love you, Ani," she whispered softly, just as he felt that strong, wonderful tremor pass from her heart to his again. "I'm not going anywhere."
"I love you too, Angel," Anakin whispered, gazing at her fondly as he pulled the comlink from her pocket. "Everything's going to be fine," he said, as he pressed the button and opened the communications channel. "I promise."
Anakin winced as another wave of pain shot through his chest, and he turned his attention to the comlink in his hand as he heard Threepio's anxious voice suddenly echo through the tunnel around them.
"Mistress Padmé?" Threepio called, his voice small and distant, as Anakin lifted the comlink up in front of him. "Mistress Padmé, can you hear me? Oh, do please come in."
"Threepio," Anakin said, as he leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes for a moment. "It's me, Anakin," he said. "What's going on?"
"Master Ani?" Threepio exclaimed, excitedly. "Is Mistress Padmé with you? Are you both all right?"
"Padmé's hurt, Threepio," Anakin said quietly, and he paused and held his breath for a moment, as another wave of pain surged through his chest. "She's hurt bad," he gasped, after a long pause, as the pain began to subside again. "I'm on my way out to the ship right now," he said. "Where are you?"
"We're on the Destiny, Master Ani," Threepio said. "Less than twenty meters from your ship."
"Good," Anakin said, as he took another deep breath. "Stay there. I'll be there in five minutes."
Anakin opened his eyes, and his brow furrowed, deeply, as he heard Threepio's anxious voice respond to him. "Master Ani," he said, "Artoo has just intercepted a transmission. It was somewhat cryptic, and a bit broken and sporadic, but thankfully, Artoo was able to run it through the ship's filters and…"
"Threepio," Anakin interrupted, closing his eyes as he tried to push back another wave of pain that dogged him, "I know you're just trying to help, but could you get to the point?"
Anakin looked up and opened his eyes, as he heard Threepio's anxious response. "There are three battalions of clone troopers en route to this location as we speak," he said, excitedly. "Apparently, they've been alerted to our presence, and they'll be here in approximately thirteen minutes."
Anakin looked down at the comlink in disbelief, as he listened intently to Threepio's small, tinny voice. "Apparently, this was all one big trap, designed to catch you and Master Kenobi," he said. "They've been given orders to destroy all of us."
Of utmost importance it is, Anakin, that you protect Padmé, and your younglings, at all cost.
Yoda's words echoed through Anakin's mind, as he glanced down and looked at Padmé's face as he cradled her in his arms; her eyes were closed, and he could feel her quick, rapid breathing as she tried to cope with the pain that coursed through her body.
Nothing else mattered to him, now; the two of them had done all that they could. He could feel the Force speaking to him now, as clearly as he ever had. He had to get her out of here, to make sure that she, and their twins, were safe.
"Threepio," Anakin said, as he quickly turned his eyes back to the comlink in his hand. "Get the ship powered up," he said. "I'll be there in less than five minutes. Tell Artoo to be ready to take off when I get there."
"But, Master Ani," Threepio exclaimed excitedly, as Anakin listened to his voice intently, "There's something else that I need to tell you," he said. "They're already…"
Anakin dropped the comlink to the floor beside him, as he instinctively pulled Padmé close to him, covering as much of her body as he could with his own as the brilliant orange laser blast sent a shower of sparks and rock fragments spraying over them.
He leaned up, reaching over Padmé with his left hand; the brilliant, pure white blade of his weapon blazed forth instantly, as he swung it up and sent several incoming blasts back across the chamber toward the group of battle droids that began to flow into the chamber and open fire on them.
Anakin felt Padmé's arms tighten around his neck, and he leaned back against the wall, wrapping his free arm tightly around her as he pulled her as closely to him as he could as he watched the battle droids filter into the chamber just outside of the tunnel.
Anakin felt a sense of despair begin to sweep over him, as he glanced up quickly over the edge of the rocky structure where he and Padmé concealed themselves; there were at least twenty, maybe more, and every one of them were between him and the exit that he so desperately needed to get Padmé through.
Anakin ducked his head quickly just as the laser blast struck the edge of the rock in front of him. He closed his eyes tightly as another shower of stone fragments rained down over them, and he instinctively placed his arm over Padmé's face, shielding her as best he could from the hot, sharp fragments. He swung his blade up quickly, letting the Force guide him, as he looked back up and turned the next two blasts away, and he watched, with a sense of satisfaction, as the two blasts caught the droids who had fired them squarely in the chest, sending them clattering to the stone floor beneath them.
The moment of hope was short lived, however, as he watched two more droids enter the chamber to take the place of the two that had fallen. He was cornered, and time was running out, quickly. He glanced back down at Padmé again, as she lay huddled close to his chest, her eyes still closed, and he could sense the pain that flowed through her as she lay in his arms, her breath still coming fast and shallow.
Anakin suddenly sensed a strong, familiar presence, just as he heard the sound of the blaster that echoed through the chamber; it caught his attention, standing out from the ones that continued to fire at him. It was different, louder, and more powerful. He looked up, just in time to hear the weapon fire again, and he watched with a growing sense of amazement as he saw the powerful blast strike the droid directly across from him, and send it flying to the floor in front of him.
Anakin felt that familiar glimmer of hope return, just as he saw Bail Organa and Yoda appear out of the dark tunnel directly across from him.
Bail leveled his high-powered blaster pistol at the droid in front of him, just as the bewildered droids began to turn toward them; he squeezed the trigger, and watched with a sense of deep satisfaction as the blast caught the droid directly between the eyes, sending its pointed, metal head flying through the chamber and clattering to the floor.
Yoda stretched out his small hand, and Bail watched as the droids closest to them were suddenly picked up and thrown across the chamber.
"Anakin!" Yoda shouted, as Bail leveled his weapon and took out two more of the droids that turned and began to fire on them as well. "A weapon, I need, and quickly!"
"What's happening, Ani?" Padmé asked weakly, and she jumped and squeezed his neck tightly as another blast from their attackers sent another spray of hot stone fragments flying over them.
"We're getting ready to get out of here," Anakin nodded, as he quickly powered down his saber and drew his arm back over his shoulder. "Right now."
"OOooowwwWWW!" Anakin shouted, as his broken ribs grated in his chest as he threw his saber as hard toward Yoda as he could; he held his breath for a moment, trying hard to push back the searing wave of pain, as he wrapped both of his arms tightly around Padmé and looked up over the edge of the rocks beside him.
Anakin caught sight of his saber, as its smoothly polished hilt flew through the air, end over end, and directly into Yoda's outstretched hand.
Yoda instantly wrapped both of his small hands tightly around the hilt of Anakin's weapon; its brilliant white blade blazed forth, and, in one smooth fluid motion, the Jedi Master leapt toward the center of the room, the weapon in his hand flashing brightly as he allowed the Force to flow through him.
Anakin watched, in shear amazement, as the droids turned their attention from him and Padmé and began to fire wildly at the tiny Jedi Master, as he cartwheeled through their midst, Anakin's pure white, humming blade slicing cleanly through one droid, and then another, sending arms, legs, heads and weapons flying around the chamber in a blur of pure white light and orange sparks.
Yoda brought the blade of Anakin's saber around, neatly taking the head off of one of the last droids near him, and, as its heavy metal body fell to the floor with a loud crash, he turned and looked back toward Bail as he heard the senator's weapon discharge again.
Yoda watched, through the haze of thick smoke that filled the chamber, as Bail's shot send the last droid flying backwards into the wall behind it; he glanced around the chamber, looking carefully at the mass of twisted, destroyed droids that littered the chamber floor. The chamber was silent now, except for an occasional spark and pop.
Yoda looked back up at Bail as he walked toward him, quickly extinguishing Anakin's weapon. "Hurry, we must," Yoda said, as he watched his friend quickly holster his weapon at his side as they started across the droid-strewn chamber to the place where Anakin and Padmé were. "Running out of time, we are."
Anakin looked up, just in time to see Bail and Yoda step around the rocky structure beside him. "It's good to see you, Master," Anakin groaned, his own breath growing more shallow from the pain that tore through his chest.
"Good to see you, it is as well, Anakin," Yoda said, a concerned smile spreading across his face as he watched Bail kneel down quickly in front of Anakin.
"How is she?" Bail asked, as he looked up at Anakin's painful face.
"She's hurt," Anakin said softly, as he glanced down at Padmé again, listening to her shallow, rapid breathing as she clung tightly to him. "We need to get her out of here, and fast."
Bail nodded his head, and then he looked up as Anakin groaned again. "You're hurt, too," Bail said, as he watched Anakin grit his teeth hard and hold his breath as the pain coursed through his chest again. "Where?"
"My chest," Anakin groaned, as he squeezed his eyes shut tight. "Some of my ribs are broken."
Anakin opened his eyes; he and Bail both glanced over at Yoda as he spoke again. "Get them out of here, we must," Yoda said, and Anakin glanced back down at his weapon as it flashed brightly in Yoda's tiny hand. "And quickly. Less than ten minutes, we have, until the clone ships arrive."
"Carry Padmé, you must," Yoda said, as he quickly tucked Anakin's weapon into his robes. "Help young Skywalker, I will," he said. "Get them aboard your ship, we must."
Bail nodded his head, and Anakin looked down as Bail leaned closer to him and slipped his arms around Padmé's shoulder and under her knees. "Don't worry, Anakin," Bail said, as he watched Anakin turn his worried face toward him. "I'll be careful. I promise."
Anakin gently brushed his hand through Padmé's long, brown hair as Bail lifted her up carefully into his arms. Anakin turned and looked up at Yoda, as he stepped up beside him and extended his small hand to him.
Anakin reached down and picked up the comlink that lay on the ground beside him, and then reached up and took Yoda's hand tightly. He groaned and squeezed his eyes shut tightly, as his ribs grated against each other again as Yoda helped him up to his feet.
"Hurry," Yoda said, as he steadied Anakin as the young Jedi opened his pain filled eyes. He clutched his chest tightly as the two of them began to follow Bail toward the tunnel across from them.
"The senator's ship," Anakin groaned, as he looked down at Yoda as they walked as quickly as they could toward the exit. "Where is it?"
"Just outside," Yoda said, nodding his head. "Near your own."
"The droids," Anakin said, and Yoda watched him as Anakin pressed the button on the comlink and brought it up to his face. "We can't leave the droids behind."
Anakin looked back up, and he watched Bail step carefully over the last droid that lay in the floor in front of him, and then make his way into the dark tunnel toward the exit, Padmé's long, blue cloak swaying around his legs as he carried her. Anakin turned his attention back to the comlink, as it beeped loudly as he and Yoda stepped into the tunnel behind him.
"Threepio?" Anakin said, his voice raspy and broken from the pain that coursed through his body. "I want you to listen to me, very carefully."
Anakin's voice echoed through the long, dark tunnel, as, with Yoda steadying him as much as he could, the four of them made their way down the tunnel and back toward the entrance, where the Millennium Falcon waited for them.
Our story continues shortly!