Chapter 8

The fading sunlight was dipping down behind the skyline of the buildings. With evening approaching, the planet wide city was still alive.

Concealed on a balcony by passing traffic, Darth Sidous and Darth Maul walked over to the railing. Hoods raised, concealing their faces, in case anyone got too close.

"Tatooine is sparsely populated. If the trace is correct, finding them will be easy." Darth Maul said.

"Move against the Jedi first. You shouldn't have any trouble taking the queen back to Naboo." The master said.

"Yes, my master."

Silence settled between them. Maul was still trying to figure out the sudden appearance of Knight Anya Skywalker. Learning that Qui-Gon Jinn never went to Naboo, but a new Jedi, Skywalker, had gone instead, Sidous was still determined to have his plans go through. Maul could sense there was more his master wasn't telling him.

"What is it, my master?"

"Bring Skywalker to me. Once you had taken the queen back to Naboo and she had signed the treaty, take Skywalker to Romos 8. Contact me once you're there." explain Sidous.

"If I may ask, why the Jedi? Why not kill her?"

"Skywalker poses a strong Force energy. This power makes her the strongest of all the Jedi. She's part of a prophecy. Which one, I'm not sure. She maybe the Chosen One."

The Chosen One? Maul had read about a prophecy called The Chosen One. This Chosen One was to bring balance to the Force. He had always thought the Jedi's prophecies were only tales. But could this prophecy be true? Can someone have that much power and be turned to the Dark Side?

"Don't worry, my apprentice. She will be turned." Sidous suddenly said.

"Of course." replied Maul.

"And you will get to turn her."

Pride swelled up inside Maul. His master must think he's ready to train another. He knew there were only two; master and an apprentice. More pride flooded through him. If his master was giving him the job of turning Skywalker, then that means he'll become the master and she the apprentice.

"You're a good apprentice, Maul. Don't disappoint me."

"I will not fail you, master." Darth Maul said bowing his head. He will not screw up. He'll show Sidous he is ready to train another.

"Don't forget. Deal with the queen first."

Bowing his head, Maul walked back into the building. Sidous stood there, gazing out at the city. The prophecy will be his. And she will be turned. He guarantees that. No matter how strong her will is, she will eventually brake. He has been waiting for a long time. A grin creped onto his lips. With the blockade of Naboo and his rise to power, everything was going according to plan. Except Qui-Gon Jinn wouldn't see his death. But his brat of a padawan will. And the Chosen One is an added bonus. The Jedi will not see their destruction until it was too late.

Dark Lord Anya Skywalker. Sidous liked the sound of it. Vader. Darth Vader. He liked that even better. That name, is sounds so familiar. Where has he heard that before?

An image of a black helmet with a breather mask appeared before his eyes. He has seen this image before. His mind was telling him this mask belongs to Darth Vader. Sidous doesn't remember a Darth Vader. Unless this image and knowledge is a vision.

Smirking, Sidous walked back into his, or his alter ego, Senator Palpatine's apartment. This was something he was going to have to look into. Perhaps Anya Skywalker will be this Vader character.

Sidous' plans were going better then he had hoped. And he's getting an added bonus.

He stood on the steps, watching the group work. Shmi stepped out of the house and joined him.

"He has a good heart." he said.

"He thinks of others before himself." she said.

"He has a special gift. He can see things before they happen. It's a Jedi trait. That's how he can pilot a pod racer." He turned to her. "Who was his father?" He braced himself for the answer. He knew what she was going to say.

"Deem." Shmi said.

There was no. . . .Deem? He gave her a puzzled expression. "Who was he?" he asked without realizing he asked it.

"He was another slave. We worked for Caseu. Anakin and I were sold to Gardola the Hutt. Deem wasn't. He wanted to be with us and escaped. But while trying to escape, he was killed." she explained.

"Does Anakin know who his father was?"

"Ani was not even a year old when Deem was killed."

The two were silent for a few moments. His mind was still trying to process the information. Anakin had a father who was a slave. But he remembers there wasn't any father. What was going on? Something was seriously wrong here.

"Did Deem have special abilities also?"

"No. He was a good mechanic and he use to build pod racers. But he didn't have any powers."

Shmi looked down at the group. Anakin was working on one of the engines. Jar Jar was working on the other engine.

"If he was born under the Republic, we would had identified him earlier." Obi-Wan said.

"Is there a way you can free him?"

"I didn't come here to free slaves." he said

They stood there for a few minutes. Shmi walked back into the house. Once she was gone, Obi-Wan contacted Anya

"Something is going on here."

"What?"

"Anakin had a father named Deem. He was killed when he tried to escaped. Anakin wasn't a year old yet."

There was silence. "Are you sure?" came the replay.

"Yes. Shmi just told me. And the meeting with Watto was different then how Quit-Gon told me. There are so many different things that are wrong." explained Obi-Wan.

"I know. I've read the reports and journals enteys about this mission. . . ." Anya's voice trailed off. "What is going on? Why is the time line getting messed up?"

"I don't know, love." Obi-Wan said as he looked towards the house. For a few seconds, he thought he saw a shadow move near the doorway. He gotten the sense Shmi was listening.

"Lets wish Anakin can win the race this time. If not, we're stuck." Anya said.

"Only time will tell. If anything happens, contact me." he said.

"I think I got a handle on things here. Be careful."

"I will."

Obi-Wan turned off the communication. Movement from the doorway, caught his eye. Shmi walked away from the doorway. How long have she been there? And how much did she hear?

The planet of Tatooine grew larger in the viewport. Darth Maul steered the ship towards the coordinates the trace came from. The queen and the young Jedi had escaped from Naboo just days ago. His master needed the queen to sign the treaty to make the invasion legal. Now along with getting the queen back to Naboo, Darth Sidous wanted him to bring back the Jedi, Anya Skywalker.

There was something special about the Skywalker brat. He knew it wasn't for her beauty. Something to do with her abilities. Sidous believed she was The Chosen One. A prophecy that said The One would bring balance to the Force. Maul never knew his master believed in such things.  

Maul brought the ship down on a high plateau. Off in the distance, he saw two sets of area lights. Walking to the edge, he raised his microbincoculars. Two settlements. From his search, he knows one of the settlements was Mos Espa and the other was probably either Bontaeve or Mos Esley. They can be anywhere.

A tingling sense at the back of his mind told him the Jedi were near. He was about to summon the probe droids when, for some old reason, he knew where they were. One was on their ship and the other was in Mos Espa. He stretched out with his sense and was nearly knocked off his feet.

He felt the same disturbance he felt on Malastire. But he also felt, heard an echo. As if Skywalker was in two different places. Impossible. The only way for that to happen is if Kenobi had special abilities too. He stretched out with his sense again and felt a connection between the two. A bond? What the hell was going on? The only way to fine out is if he got closer to the Jedi.

A surprise attack. No one will realize what was happening before it was too late. An evil smirk appeared. If Skywalker was on the ship, he would be able to get both the queen and the Jedi.

Turning, he headed back into the ship. A few minutes later, his speederbike flew out of the cargo hull and Maul raced towards the ship.

Obi-Wan watched as Anakin ran into the house. "Anya," he said into the comlink.

"Right here.'

"I need you to do something. Have you ever took a midi-chlorian count?"

"Master Izlop showed us how. Why?"

"I need you to test some blood."

"Anakin?"

"Yeah."

"Hold on just a sec." There was a short pause. "Ready."

He put the blood up to the comlink. He waited as Anya analyzed the blood sample. "What does it read?"

"Nine thousand."

What? "Did you say nine thousands?"

"Yes. Average, right?"

"That can't be. Are you reading it right?"

"Yes. Obi-Wan, didn't Anakin have 20,000? Higher then Yoda?"

"Something is going on here. Everything is changing."

"I don't understand it either. From the files and the journals, Anakin had no father and his midi-chlorian count was over twenty thousand."

"We need to get back to Coruscant." Obi-Wan said.

Anya was silent. He could tell something was bothering her. Even this far apart, he could sense her emotions. Before he couldn't.

"What is it, Anya? What's wrong?"

"I don't know. I just have this feeling."

"A feeling? Like what?"

"Something's not right. Something wrong. I can't put my finger on it."

"Is that something close by?" he asked, concerned.

"I can't tell. It's mostly like a tingle."

"Everything seems the same. But it's all wrong. Be careful tonight."

"I will. It's probably nothing. Did anything happen beside the transmission?" she asked.

"The only other thing that happened was the fight between Qui-Gon and the Sith. Why?"

"Just asking." She was quite for a few seconds. "Obi,"

"I'm still here." he said looking off in the directions of the ship. He saw a bright star on the horizon and wondered if it was her.

"It's weird. Reading and experiencing it is two different things."

"I know. I'm reliving this hellish mission." Silence hung between them for what seemed like minutes.

"Be careful." she said.

"I will." Silence slipped among them again. "I miss you." the padawan replied.

"I miss you, too. Get some sleep. You have a big day tomorrow."

"Yeah, lets hope this stays the same."

"Good night." Anya's voice came over the link.

"Good night, love."

Anya turned the comm off and sat back in the chair. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. What she didn't tell Obi-Wan was that the feeling was getting stronger.

Obi-Wan shut off the comlink and looked back at the door to see Shmi standing there. He wondered how long she had been standing here. And how much she head heard.

"Nice night." he said.

"Yes, it is." she answered, stepping out into the evening air.

"The last time I was on Tatooine, I was stuck on a ship all night."

"I couldn't help hear the end of your conversation. She sounds special."

So she did hear the last part. "She is special."

"What's her name?" Shmi asked sitting next to him.

"Anya." Obi-Wan smiled and looked out at the desert.

"She's also a Jedi?"

"A Knight."

"You a knight too, Obi-Wan?"

"Unfortunate, no. I'm a Padawan learner. A step down from a Knight. Padawans are trained by a Knight or a Master." he explained.

"So, Anya is your master?"

"No," he chuckled. "My master is on Coruscant. Anya is my lover."

"Don't Padawans usually travel with their masters?" Shmi asked, staring at him.

"A lot of the time yes."

"Then why isn't your master here?"

"My master was suppose to be on this mission. But he had to stay on Coruscant for other business. Anya agreed to take his place."

"Where is she now?"

"On our ship, guarding the queen."

"I don't know how it works, but shouldn't the master be in charge?"

Obi-Wan had to think about what she said. "Why Anya didn't come in town? We thought it was best if I came instead."

"It's getting late." Shmi said standing. Obi-Wan stood as well.

As they entered the house, his mind kept going back to what Anya had said about the strange feeling she had. He knew he wasn't going to get much sleep that night, not as long as Anya was on the ship and her feeling.

Everyone on the ship was a sleep. Capitan Panaka had left two guards on duty. Anya laid in her bed, staring up at the ceiling. The feeling kept growing stronger. Her mind was on Obi-Wan. Several times she tried to sleep, but couldn't.

Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly. She just closed her eyes when the strange feeling exploded into full awareness. Her senses came full alert. Her eyelids flow opened.

Danger!

Something is going to happen. Jumping up, she got dressed.

In the main area of the ship, the two guards were sitting around the table, playing cards. One of the guards looked up to see her. He knew something was up when he noticed the unlit lightsaber in her hand.

"Knight Skywalker," the one that noticed her said. "Is there something wrong?"

"I don't know." she said looking around. "I sense danger."

"Inside the ship?" the other guard asked.

Anya was quite, listening to the Force. "No." she answered softly. "Outside the ship." Anya turned to the guard who spoke first. "Go get Panaka. And keep it quite. I don't want the alarm the queen."

Nodding his head, the guard left to fetch Panaka. A few minutes later, Panaka and several more guards appeared.

"What's going on?" Panaka asked.

"Danger. Outside the ship. I don't know what. But what ever it is, it's close by." the Jedi Knight stated.

"Let's go take a look." He turned to the guards. "Four come with me. You two," He pointed to the two guards Anya had spoken to. "Stay in the ship. Sirber and Tark, guard the ramp. Lets go."

The group moved to the ramp. Panaka hit the release lever and the ramp hissed opened. With a snap-hiss, Anya's white blade came to life. She headed down the ramp first, followed by Panaka. As the group exited the ship, they scanned the surrounded area.

Anya felt a disturbance in the Force. A sense of danger. She walked several yards away from the ship. She couldn't see much. All she saw was dark sand. The sense of danger was getting stronger. The royal guards and Panaka were staying close to the ship.

What had caused her to wake up? Something was wrong. Out of place.

Then all of a sudden, the sense of danger exploded into full knowledge. She turned to her left just in time to block a red energy blade. Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at the face of her attacker. The red, black, horned face belonged to only one person: Darth Maul!

Anya was almost over powered by the darkness that was evaporating off the Sith apprentice. She only read about him. She never thought she would encounter him in the middle of the night in the Tatooine's dessert. She regain her center and was prepared to handle the Sith.

Darth Maul pulled his lightsaber away and swung low at her legs. Anya jumped to avoid the blade. Red and white energy blades clashed as the two battled. Anya parried and countered each of Maul's strikes. Sweat was starting to run down Anya's neck. She had never gone up against anyone like Maul before. She only read and heard how powerful the Sith was. And now she knows. Maul tried to kick Anya in the chin with is boot. But she was able to duck away.

Suddenly, a blaster bolt wizard past Anya, just barely missed grazing her right cheek, and struck the rock. Maul glanced back to see Panaka and several guards heading towards them.

"Until later." the Sith said.

With one over hand blow, he somersaulted over Anya and disappeared. Anya was knocked down by the blow. She sat on the ground, gasping for breath.

"Anya, you alright?" Panaka asked bending down next to her.

"I'll be fine." she said in between breaths.

"Who was that?"

"A Sith." she said it like it was a curse. "We better get back inside."

Panaka helped her up off the ground and the group headed back to the ship. Once safely inside, the boarding ramp closed and was locked. When they entered the main compartment, they found the queen and her handmaidens waiting. Both Anya and Panaka bowed when they approached her.

"Is everything alright?" the queen asked.

Anya looked at her and suddenly it downed on her that the young woman who was suppose to be Queen Amidala, wasn't. A handmaiden! If this was just a handmaiden, then that means Padmé was the real queen. Why didn't she realize it before.

The handmaiden noticed the realization on Anya's face. "Jedi Knight, is there something wrong?" she asked.

"You're. . ." Anya didn't know what to call her. "You're not Queen Amidala."

"My name is Sabé. I'm the queen's bodyguard. I was wondering how long it would take you to figure it out."

"I'm surprised you allowed her highness to travel into town." the Jedi stated. 

"She wanted to check the planet out." Sabé answered. "Besides, she knows how to handle herself in a fight. If anything shall happen to her, Obi-Wan is there. Now, what happened?"

"We were attacked."

"Attacked?" Sabé exclaimed.

Anya quickly explained what happened. "There was only one attacker. I believe he was after her highness." Panaka added.

"No." All eyes turned to Anya. "That might be his main objective. But I sense he was after either Obi-Wan or myself."

"Why? And who was this attacked?" the queen's bodyguard asked.

"He's a Sith. He's a Jedi who follows the Dark Side of the Force. His name is Darth Maul. And as to why," Anya didn't know how much to tell them. The less they know, the better. "I don't know. We're trying to figure that out."

"Do you think he'll return tonight?" Ric Olié asked.

"No. If he does, he'll return tomorrow."

There wasn't much anyone could do. All they can do was wait for the others to return. Panaka put some more guards on duty and a pilot, just in case. Once everyone was settled, Anya went back to her shared quarters with Obi-Wan.

She sat on the bed, toying with the idea of contacting Obi-Wan. Then decided not to. She didn't want to disturb or worry him. Obi-Wan had enough to worry about. Besides, she didn't want him to think she couldn't handle things on her own. What troubled her was Maul's appearance. She doesn't remember reading about the Sith attacking at night. If he did, Obi-Wan would had mentioned it.

Crossing her legs, hands resting on her knees, she stretched out to the Force and found her center. Images rolled by. The images were events that already happened. None of the images had anything to do with the mission. She found no answers as to why Maul would attack at night.

Anya refocused her thoughts and reached out to Obi-Wan. She sensed his presence in a small house. Through the Force, she could tell he was troubled. Everything that happened today was almost the complete opponent. Anakin has a father and his midi-chlorain count was average. If only he knew what happened.

Laying down, she closed her eyes. //Good night, love.// she sent, knowing he wouldn't be able to hear it. She just settled down when she heard a voice. Obi-Wan's voice!

//Good night.// The words were filled with love.

She laid there, staring up at the ceiling. That's the third time they were able to read each other that intimate. The only way is if they were bonded. But they weren't. What was going on? Could somehow this mission be causing this?

Feeling the comfort by the brief touch from Obi-Wan, she quickly fell asleep.

The night sounds of Tatooine filtered in through the small window. Obi-Wan laid awake on the make shift bed on the floor. The small house was quite. Except for the usual night sounds and Jar Jar's snoring. Not far from him, Padmé was sound asleep in Shmi's room. For some odd reason, the young handmaiden or queen, was making him uncomfortable. Just the way she sometimes looked at him. He couldn't figure out why.

A noise outside caught his attention. He stared at the window before closing his eyes. His mind drifted to Anya. And his heart aced. He missed her deeply. Maybe it's because of the mission. He reached out with the Force and found her on the ship. He immediately sensed danger. His senses came full alert. He was ready to hurry back to help. But he didn't. He knew Anya could handle herself. The danger peaked and somehow he could tell she was fighting. But with who? Then a wave of darkness washed over him. Just as sudden as it started, the danger and the darkness were gone. What ever it was, was gone now. Obi-Wan wished he knew what was going on. She'll tell him when he gets back. He just closed his eyes when he heard a voice in his head.

//Good night, love.//

The voice belonged to Anya. The words were filled with love. Too tired to think about it, he answered back.

//Good night.//

He then rolled over and fell asleep.