"A Fire Inside"
The anguish and pain left over from the day's events had burned a gaping hole in the young pilot's chest. The image of the woman he loved falling to the floor on the blade of a man he thought he respected was indelibly etched into the back of his eyelids, making every blink the source of intolerable agony. How could he have been so slow in going to her chambers? How could he have let her die? Each question incinerated his soul, until the heat of it was too much. It took him a few moments to recognize that the wretched animal keening that reverberated through the cockpit was pouring from his mouth. He gasped as tears rolled down his face, leaving hot trails on his cheeks that refused to be cooled. He poured the energy of his intense pain into the black hole he'd built inside himself. The immediate comfort of rage filled him until he was able to quell the tide of grief. He would be okay, but the one responsible for the death of his wife would not be.
Several hours later, his small ship landed on his own private landing platform. He disembarked from it, turning to inspect it even as he did so. It was an experimental fighter, something called a TIE fighter. The Emperor had asked him to test it out for him, for the Empire. In the years since the first battle of the Clone wars, he and Palpatine had grown close. The wizened old man had shown him the truth about his past. He was no ordinary man, he was a great Lord of the Sith. At first Anakin had been appalled by this, but Palpatine had assured him that the Jedi were misguided. They did not know what the Force was. The only way to truly appreciate that great, mystic power, was to feed it with the hate and anger in your heart.
Slowly, Anakin had come to except this and wanted to learn more. Unfortunately, the man he knew as Count Dooku, but was actually Darth Tyranus, stood in his way. As part of the Sith Code, only two Dark Lords could exist at the same time. His training had been put on hold. Now that Tyranus was dead, Anakin could begin his real training. The thought of Tyranus' death almost broke the tentative grasp on his emotions. Yes, he would now be trained, but at what cost? How much would he have to lose before he started to become whole again? His knees threatened to buckle, as he took a slow deep breath to bring himself back to a state of total void. He stepped away from the starship and headed inside the building to meet his new master.
The stately form of the now-Emperor shone like a beacon in Anakin's eyes. The man radiated strength of being and character. Old? Yes. Powerful? No sentient being could doubt it. The power in this man made the room almost sizzle. He turned to face the young man, deliberately taking his time. He didn't speak, just took time to melt the former Padawan under his fiery gaze.
"You are troubled." It was not a question so Anakin did not answer. "I felt Darth Tyranus' death, did you kill him?" This time his words were a question.
"Yes. He killed my wife." His voice threatened to break apart under the intense hammering of his barely controlled anguish.
"Yes, Yes I know." He nodded sagely in response, causing Anakin's eyes to light with scarcely contained hatred.
"What do you mean you know?" he questioned, his voice becoming deeper, booming throughout the small room.
"I know because I sent Lord Tyranus to Naboo." Whether or not he was going to say more mattered little because powerful hands held him around the throat using the strength in them augmented by the Force to cut off his air supply.
"Did you command him to kill my wife?" His voice was no longer deep and booming, it was a harsh whisper. Somehow, this put more fear in the old man's mind than did the first.
"No. I sent him to bring your wife here, to you. So you both could be happy and you wouldn't be so distracted all the time." The man's mastery of the Force was incredible, as his voice maintained its proper pitch and volume even when no air was supplied it.
"Then, why did he kill her?!" He could not stop his fingers from clenching tighter around the man's neck any more than he could stop the rage pour from him.
"He was made to." The power in the hands around his neck seemed to finally take effect as his breathing began to become labored.
"By whom?!?" Anakin brought his face closer to Palpatine's so the old man could see the absolute fury boiling there.
"By, Obi-Wan." His pale features crinkled into an almost imperceptible smile as the former padawan fell away from him and shook his head in disbelief.
"No. That's not possible. Obi-Wan isn't strong enough to control someone like that. No, it's not possible." He held his head in his hands, shaking it as he backed up into the wall.
"Oh, but he was. And if he could control Tyranus, then he could control any Jedi. Even you."
Anakin's head shot up at this, making the Emperor chuckle softly. "My dear boy, didn't you always tell me that Obi-Wan held you back, wanted you to be inferior to him? How do you think he was able to hold you back for so long?" he prodded gently.
"He wanted me to be weak, to be his padawan, to shape me into the perfect tool." His voice was soft, subdued, filled with pain.
"So why in the galaxy would he want Padme dead?" he asked as if actually puzzled.
"Because she showed me my inner strength. And.....she....distracted me." he answered, falling slowly to his knees against the wall.
"But, now I've shown you your true power and now, you can defeat him." Palpatine continued.
But, Anakin didn't hear him. His mind was too busy mulling over this ultimate betrayal. You could have destroyed me, Obi-Wan, but not Padme. I will not forgive this, my former master. You will pay. I will devastate your flesh until I can see her face from it. I will not forgive this. I will not forgive this. I will not forgive this. I WILL NOT FORGIVE THIS!!!
"I WILL NOT FORGIVE THIS!!!!" his voice rang out in the small room, amplified by the blackness of his heart, of the Force. He screamed to the ceiling, his head thrown back, arms flung out. Azure electricity poured from his fingertips, bathing the room in an eerie iridescent glow. His eyes lost their natural blue to an awful ghostly white as more of the ill-produced lightning shot from them to the ceiling.
Palpatine could only look on in pride at what he'd created. But no amount of pride could mask the chill that ran up his spine as he stared at the illuminated darkness in front of him. Anakin still kneeled on the floor, but the incandescence and the pose made him look like some condemned god, flung from heaven. In a moment of enlightenment, Palpatine realized that this man was stronger than he could ever be and could destroy him, now if he wished. He would have to find some means, some fanatical idea to restrain him with.
The deadly screen of lightning gradually dissipated, as the young man slumped down defeated by his own inner turmoil.
"Anakin," Palpatine took a few hesitant steps toward the slouched figure, "the time for grief is over, Anakin. The time for vengeance is at hand. Spend this anger on those who would stop you!! Destroy them before they destroy you!!"
"You ask a very difficult thing of me. These men, Jedi, were my friends and mentors for a very long time. To turn on them would be to turn traitor on my own family." His voice was devoid of any emotion now. He was like a drone, a droid.
"They were never there for you, Anakin. They never trusted you nor loved you. You owe them nothing!! Destroy them! They are a threat to the both of us!" He lent anger and rage to his voice to stir the man to action, but he remained in the same emotionless heap.
"Do you ask this of me for your own gain, or mine?" he asked, his voice still flat, toneless.
"For both of us, but you will never be complete until you destroy all the Jedi, including your former master, Obi-Wan."
At the mention of that man's name, Anakin snapped to attention. He didn't answer, didn't even respond to Palpatine's words, he merely walked from the room, all vestiges of weakness gone.