Here it is! There will be an epilogue posted within a couple days. Thanks for reading! I love you all! beams with happiness
"Let her down."
The words were whispered, but it came to Obi-Wan's ears as a resounding yell. He could feel something pushing against the barriers of his Force restraint; that something he knew now to be his former Padawan. Anakin stood in the doorway, radiating the energy of the Force. New hope was born within him. He would save Rowan. Yes, yes, he knew Anakin would.
Past him, the shadow grimaced as realization dawned within his opaque eyes. And then, just as quickly as it had come, the sneer was replaced by an inexplicable grin, barely visible in the pale light.
"Darth Vader. You have returned."
"No." breathed Anakin, moving forwards, skirting the edge of the line of nightfall. 'Never."
"It was... inevitable." sighed the Sith Lord, while still holding his young prisoner hostage in an invisible grasp. "I know what lays in your heart, boy. It is feigning sleep, coiling, waiting."
A slight misstep; Anakin's lightsaber wavers, almost imperceptibly. "Release her, Palpatine."
The creature cast his gaze back and watches as the ivory skinned child struggles against restraints that she cannot see; as she fights to keep the tears out of her eyes and strength in her features. The creature turns back to the man of the renewed Light.
"No." it hisses, inhuman. A predator begins to stalk its prey, moving around the child and igniting its crimson blade.
A blue light bursts into existence, as Anakin crosses the border into the land of dark. Advancing, he watches Palpatine with a wary and yet, ready, eye. Through his peripheral vision he can see his former Master, broken and exhausted, watching as he struggles to keep consciousness. Anakin can the little girl on the ground, still struggling valiantly, and he is struck by a vision of his own daughter. His grip steadies. He knows what he fights for.
The demonic features before him become impassive, and the game has begun.
Palpatine moves first, red weapon slashing through the air, pushing the Jedi back slightly. A sky-blue blade meets its evil twin in mid-move, and sparks fly in the night. Parry to parry, attack to defense, the two move against each other. Physical attacks are met with retaliation, mental assaults are defeated. Faster and faster the battle weaves. Unbeknownst to either of the them, the shatterpoint approaches. A lightsaber misses its mark, and its wielder is thrown to the ground as his weapon rolls away. A cry rings out again in the artificial night.
"Anakin!" Obi-Wan Kenobi rages against his metal bindings as his best and greatest friend is thrown to the ground.
The Emperor of what was once the Republic brings his glowing blade to the throat of his opponent. Anakin Skywalker does not move.
"Join me again." whispers the ruler of the everlasting dark. "I will let him go, the girl too."
And then Obi-Wan realizes, from his imprisonment against the wall, that this was never about him. It was never about Rowan. It was a contingency plan. Shivering involuntarily, he knows now the truth. Palpatine would never had let the object of his desires escape so easily. He had a back-up plan. And he had been too blind, too stupid to see it.
"Anakin!" he croaks, his voice failing him. "Don't give in! It's a trap! It's you he's wanted from the-" Obi-Wan's words become a bloodcurdling scream of pain as the shadow unleashes a bolt of purple lightning from his wizened and scarred hands. The Jedi Master falls against the pillar, and slides down to the ground.
The younger Knight can do nothing against the threat of the crimson lightsaber at his throat. His vibrant blue eyes meet black ones, and for one eternal moment, Anakin can see the truth of everything, and of nothing. He sees for the first time what Obi-Wan has seen his entire adult life: the pure river of the Force. In his mind, he wades into the water completely, no longer trying to fight current, and lets himself go.
The blue eyes glow white with intense light. The shadow starts to feel fear creeping at the base of his spine. And still, Anakin Skywalker does not move. After all, he doesn't have to.
In the doorway from where he had come, the Jedi Order's smallest master emerges, his tiny frame vibrating with power. Palpatine hastily tries to stand, but it is too late. Yoda throws his emerald blade, guiding it with the Force, to strike the corrupt Chancellor in his heart. Opaque eyes glow red for a second, then fade into oblivion. He is dead before he hits the ground.
In that moment, the world becomes brighter. The Force finally breaks through the dam that the Dark Side created and plunges over the waterfall of life. Obi-Wan awakens, to find the world so much more alive.
"An-Anakin?" he mumbles, still not fully awake.
Familiar features come into view, grinning. "You didn't think I'd leave you to die, now did you Master? How many times is this now?"
Cerulean eyes look up at the laughing features. "That business on Cato Nemoidia still doesn't count."
His former Padawan takes off the Force collar and gently removes the metal bindings from around his Master's neck, and with ease, lifts the emaciated and exhausted man into his arms.
"This is the second time this month I've had to carry you, Master."
"Don't remind me, Anakin." the older man responds, smiling wearily. His attention diverts to the little girl now held in Senator Organa's strong arms. "How is she?" he asks, concern etched within his features as he looks up at his friend, his brother, his son.
"She'll be fine. Now, rest, Obi-Wan." Anakin says, as they exit the room and leave the vanquished Dark Side behind.
And so he does.