Chapter Nine

Obi-Wan stared helplessly at the destruction before him. Bodies laid strewn about the Temple's floor, old ones and young ones alike. It was the most catastrophic and horrifying thing he had ever see in his entire life. Smoke and blood filled his nostrils and he knew that life as he had known it was over.

Yoda hobbled up next to him and Obi-Wan leaned down to hear. "The last of the Jedi, we are."

Obi-Wan's mouth opened in horror. "Everyone...even the younglings?"

Yoda nodded sadly. "Yes. A tragedy, this is."

"Tragedy is a mild word for it."

Yoda nodded once again in agreement. "Something you must see, there is."

Obi-Wan mutely followed the small Jedi back onto their transport. Yoda carefully switched on a recording and Obi-Wan froze when the image appeared. It was Anakin…he murdered Senator Organa and was…bowing to Palpatine?

"The Sith lord, Palpatine is. His new apprentice, young Skywalker is."

"No…Anakin, no. He didn't do this? Did he?"

"On the planet during the attack, he was not. Still, Sidious's apprentice, he is. Vader, is his name."

"Vader…" The word rolled off Obi-Wan's tongue as if it was laced with poison. No…Anakin wouldn't have done this. He couldn't have turned. There had to be some explanation.

"Find him and destroy him, you must."

"But where will I find him."

"Search your feelings and find him, you will."

Obi-Wan nodded thoughtfully and then...it all became clear. The letters, stolen glances, Anakin's disappearance during the nights, his strange behavior whenever Senator Amidala was mentioned…if there was any doubt about their relationship, it was completely mute now. And now, if there was one thing he was certain about, it was that Senator Amidala knew where Anakin was.

Padme sat nervously on her veranda with too much contemplation on her mind to keep straight. Anakin had been gone for only a few hours but it seemed like weeks. There was something about his visit that she couldn't explain. There was something that told her he wasn't being completely honest with her. Something that said he was hiding something from her that he was desperately afraid to tell her. She looked down at her stomach and placed a protective hand over it.

She sighed, knowing that whatever he had done, it couldn't have been good. But she knew that whatever it was, he had done it because he truly believed he was doing the right thing.

She was thrown from her thoughts abruptly when she heard a knock on her door. Was he back already? That thought completely overwhelmed her and she ran to the door. When her visitor was finally revealed, it was certainly not who she was expecting to see.

"Obi-Wan? What are you doing here?"

He attempted a smile but it faded immediately when he saw her figure in her nightgown. Padme noticed the change in him and quickly looked down. To her horror, she realized that in her haste to open the door, she had forgotten to hide the very thing that Obi-Wan was now gaping at in disbelief.

She gestured for him to enter her apartment, then ran to her bedroom to find a robe. She came back to find Obi-Wan resting on the couch with his head in his hands.

"Obi-Wan, what's wrong?"

He looked up to see her standing before him, unable to get the previous image of her out of his head. If it was Anakin's child, all hell was about to break loose.

"Padme, I think you should sit down."

Her hand flew to her abdomen at that, fear creeping into her heart. If something had happened to Anakin…she had no idea what to do.

After she was sitting, he took a deep breath and began to speak. "Something's happened. We have a video recording of Anakin and Chancellor Palpatine. Anakin murdered Senator Organa, then bowed to the Chancellor. We believe that Palpatine is the Sith lord we have been searching for and that Anakin is his new apprentice. On the recording, Palpatine or Sidious called him Darth Vader."

Padme couldn't believe what she was hearing. No…no…Anakin wouldn't do that. He wouldn't turn. His words came flooding back to her and she quickly remembered that he had warned her about this.

"I can't believe this, Obi-Wan."

He nodded quickly. "I know. It was difficult for me to believe at first, but you must believe me now. Have you heard what's happened to the rest of the Jedi? They are all dead, every last one except for Yoda and me. The Temple has been destroyed…everything is gone. Palpatine has made a move to take control of the Senate. I don't see what's going to stop him from succeeding…don't you see what's happening? The Sith are taking over…and Anakin is helping to lead the attack. I know you know where he is…I need to find him."

"You're going to kill him, aren't you?"

Obi-Wan's face turned grim. "If need be, but I'd like to avoid that. You can help him by helping me. I don't want anything to happen to him…he's like a son…a brother to me. Please, Padme, tell me where he is."

Padme looked down and a second later, her decision was made. "I'm sorry, Obi-Wan. I don't know where he went."

Obi-Wan nodded sadly, having known all along that this would happen. He rose to leave but before opening the door, he turned to her one last time. "Anakin's the father, isn't he?"

She looked away, tears falling down his cheeks. He smiled sadly and whispered softly. "I'm sorry."

Then he was gone.

Padme's shoulders began to shake as tears continued to fall down her cheeks. She couldn't believe what Obi-Wan had said…if she wanted to remain sane, she couldn't believe it. There was no way that the man she loved more than life itself had betrayed everything he had ever stood for. There was no way…besides, he had told her that the Jedi would do this. He had told her not to believe it and to wait for him. But then she remembered the feeling she had had that he wasn't being honest with her.

She shook her head. There was only one way to find out what was really going on and she wasn't planning on waiting around to find out.

"I'm sorry Anakin, but it looks like I'm going to have to break my promise."

Anakin looked out into the fiery pits of Mustafar. He had carried out his Master's orders and was waiting for the order to return home…to come back to Padme. She had been on his mind through everything that day. While he had gotten rid of Nute Gunray and his associates, while his Master gave him the news that the Temple and all the Jedi were destroyed…he had been thinking of her. It was all for her. He had to admit he loved the new feeling of power and dominance that surged through him and the knowledge that this new power was going to save his wife only increased his need for it.

A nearing ship caught his gaze and then his eyes widened in surprise as he realized the ship belonged to Padme. She was supposed to be on Coruscant…what was she doing here?

He ran out to the landing pad to greet her and she flew into his arms. He kissed her gently and placed a careful hand on her abdomen.

"What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here, Padme. I told you to wait for me on Coruscant."

She gazed into his expectant eyes and somehow knew that everything was about to change. Life as she had known it was over.