To everyone that has read this and left comments, thank you very much! Enjoy chapter 7. :)
7
Obi-Wan Kenobi paced his quarters, thinking. Usually he was very calm, pacing not a habit of his. Tonight was a very odd night and through the whole he evening a very unsettled feeling gnawed at the back of his mind. Thoughts ran around his brain so fast that it felt like he was going insane.
First, there was Anakin. Obi-Wan was deeply worried about his former Padawan, his best friend, his brother. The more he heard about the younger Jedi's actions, the more concerned he became. Every attempt to reach out to Anakin resulted in Anakin closing himself off further.
Second, there was the Supreme Chancellor. What a royal mess that was getting to be. According to Bail Organa, Palpatine was pushing legislation through the Senate to give himself direct control over the Jedi. Never, in the history of the Republic, had the office of Supreme Chancellor ruled the Jedi. Add in Anakin's odd relationship with the politician, and the situation became such a jumble that it made Obi-Wan's head hurt.
Third, there was Darth Sidious. Obi-Wan had no idea where to even begin with that can of worms.
He didn't know what to do. Feeling too old for his age, Obi-Wan sighed. Already he had seen too much fighting, death and destruction for his own good. Suddenly, something spiked in the Force.
Anakin.
Obi-Wan wondered where they boy had got to, all evening he had been looking for him, wanting to talk to him about his vision. Barriss Offee had no answers, saying that Anakin told her nothing. Now that he was here, Obi-Wan decided to confront him. He slipped out of his quarters, heading in the direction where Anakin was.
In one of the main cavernous rooms of the Temple, one that served as one of the many entrances, Obi-Wan stopped. He knew Anakin was here somewhere.
"OBI-WAN!" Anakin roared.
Obi-Wan turned around, completely caught off guard. He whirled around to see Anakin standing behind him. More than Anakin's yell startled him, though, for the full brunt of Anakin's anger hit him through the Force.
This cannot be good…Obi-Wan thought to himself.
"OBI-WAN!" Anakin roared upon seeing the back of his Master. With his words, he watched as Obi-Wan turned around to face him. His Master was surprised to see him.
"Anakin? Where have you–"
Anakin gave him no time to finish. "YOU KNOW WHAT SHE'S HIDING FROM ME! YOU'VE BEEN HELPING HER ALL ALONG!"
"What in the blazes are you talking about?"
Anakin took a deep breath, setting his jaw so tightly that the nerves protested with a sharp stab of pain. How dare Obi-Wan play the part of the ignorant nerf herder at a time like this. He knew what Anakin was talking about. He knew.
"You turned her against me!"
"Are you talking about Padmé?" Obi-Wan asked him incredulously.
"You know who I'm talking about!" Anakin began to pace in front of Obi-Wan, standing straight with his narrowed eyes always on Obi-Wan. "You know what you did."
"Anakin, I haven't done a thing. I've only tried to help you."
"You're lying to me!"
"Anakin…" he warned.
"You've always lied to me!" Anakin felt his voice crack; tears welled up in his eyes. For all of his life, he dreamed of nothing more than becoming a Jedi after him and his mother gained their freedom.
And when he finally was accepted for training, he always dreamed of coming back to rescue his mother, showing her what a great Jedi he had become…
But the Jedi took that away from him. One by one, they always managed to strip away his dreams.
"You all have lied to me!" Anakin yelled so that it echoed through the whole room. Other Jedi began to notice the escalating confrontation and stopped to see what was going on.
"You all lied to me!" he repeated. "You couldn't let me be, you couldn't realize that I was different! You could never understand how I felt – you could never understand how I had attachments to other people!"
"Anakin, that's because Jedi are NOT SUPPOSED TO HAVE ATTACHMENTS," Obi-Wan shouted back.
"You only wanted me to be miserable, Obi-Wan! You wanted me to be all alone!"
"Anakin, listen to yourself!"
Anakin, however, would not listen. He stopped pacing, standing just a few inches from Obi-Wan. Anger ran through his veins so hot that he felt like he was burning, his vision was even blurring.
"No, you listen," he countered, jabbing a finger at Obi-Wan. "You drove away everyone that I ever cared about! Because of you, I'm alone!"
"If you're alone, you are only because of yourself!"
The words were true, and Anakin knew it. That did not make hearing the truth any easier for him. He lunged at Obi-Wan, wanting nothing more than to wrap his hands around his Master's throat and squeeze…
Obi-Wan was faster. As blind as Anakin's anger made him, Obi-Wan had enough control over himself to still feel the Force clearly. Just before Anakin dove for him, he ducked down and spun away from the younger Jedi.
"I've only ever tried to help you become the Jedi you wanted to be, Anakin," he said softly, standing straight again.
"You failed."
"No, it was only you who failed."
Anakin snarled, his fury having completely taken over him. Without another thought he brought his lightsaber to his hand.
"Palpatine is right," he growled.
Mace Windu jolted out of his meditation. Something was seriously wrong in the Temple. Cautious, he surveyed his room with a single glance.
There was nothing in here.
For a second, he pondered on where the sense could have come from then suddenly he was hit full force with a blast of hatred.
Someone was attacking a Master. Here, in the Temple.
Instantly, Mace jumped out of his seat and darted out of his room as fast as he could. His lightsaber swung as he did so, hitting his hip.
Yoda stood on one of the many balconies in the Temple, watching Coruscant. Thousands, millions, of lights flickered all over the planet. Humans and aliens alike hurried past the Temple in their speeders, rushing about their lives.
Yoda shook his head, thinking that all beings in the galaxy needed to slow down. Such rapid activity led to problems like the Clone Wars. In their rush to do everything, beings forgot the main purpose of life – just to live.
As he watched the cityscape, a different kind of urgency came to Yoda. Something had gone seriously wrong with young Skywalker. The wizened Master could feel him here in the Temple, leeching anger throughout the place with an intensity that the Jedi had never seen before.
Letting out a small sigh of resignation, Yoda left the balcony, leaving the people of Coruscant to bustle about their lives.
Anakin and Obi-Wan stood in the middle of the huge, open entryway. Huge columns of Alderaanian marble surrounded them. In front of Anakin, behind Obi-Wan, at the other end of the room a large bronze statue stood. Garbed in traditional Jedi robes, the figure held a folder of documents – those founding the Order – and its other hand was raised to the heavens, as if asking for wisdom to be bestowed upon all who entered the Temple.
Scattered throughout the immediate area, on balconies overlooking the floor and on the floor itself, Jedi stood frozen in place. They watched the unfolding drama in horror.
The Chosen One was turning on his own Master. Obi-Wan and Anakin, the two inseparable Jedi, looked ready to strike each other down. At Anakin's words after taking his lightsaber in hand every Jedi that heard him was pondering: Palpatine? What does he have to do with this?
Before Anakin, or Obi-Wan, could make another move Mace and Yoda arrived.
Mace needed no second looks, no more revelations to get an understanding of what was going on. Without a second thought he dashed to Anakin, grabbing the young Jedi from behind.
"What?" Anakin exclaimed, startled by the appearance of Mace. He let out a grunt as Mace wrapped his arms around him, and he struggled.
"Let me go! What are you doing!" he shouted.
Mace was out of his mind, there was no way that he could hold him back. With all his might, Anakin fought to break the hold Mace had on him.
Tugging on the arm that was across his chest, Anakin glanced over to Obi-Wan. To his mild surprise, his Master was being restrained by Yoda.
Anakin gave one more pull on Mace's arm, and when that failed he tried to twist his other hand up so that he could do some damage by igniting his lightsaber. For him, it was not so much about getting revenge on Obi-Wan but about releasing himself from Mace – it was rather embarrassing to be in this position in front of so many Jedi.
Mace, however, sensed Anakin's movement before he even began. With one hand, he wrenched Anakin's arm so that his hand popped open and he dropped the lightsaber. Anakin let out a gasp of pain, yet did not make an attempt to call his weapon back to him.
Risking another look at Obi-Wan, he saw that his Master was now standing free, with Yoda at his feet.
This was intolerable.
How dare they treat him like this.
Shooting Obi-Wan a look of pure hatred, Anakin's pulse raced. He was more than a mere Padawan, he was more than a slave – he was a person, they could not just make him bend to their wishes, they did not have a transmitter in him that they could use to blow him up if he roamed too far –
Anakin gasped for air, even though the hold Mace had on him allowed for plenty of breathing room. He couldn't breathe. Something was clouding the air, it made his lungs burn, and his eyes…
Choking, Anakin realized that it was smoke…
Not again…no…not now, he couldn't handle another now…
Out of terror he struggled against Mace one more time. The Master tightened his grip with the Force, and he was unable to move.
Flames began sprouting in the room, dancing around all the Jedi…why didn't they flee…they would die…no, they were already dead…
Anakin tried to scream, but there was no air in his lungs to scream with. He had to get away from Mace, he had to run away. Didn't Mace realize that by holding Anakin here he was going to kill him?
The Jedi have always been against you…
I would have left the Order a long time ago…
The figure rose out of the flames, that hideous black figure…his hand raised, his finger pointed straight at Anakin.
Fear gripped Anakin completely. Never before in his life had he been so frightened. He went completely limp. Mace, completely caught off guard by this, let go of Anakin. The young Jedi collapsed to the ground.
Everything was so wrong. It was all Anakin's fault – Obi-Wan and Padmé were right. They were all in danger.
Gasping, Anakin could not take his eyes off the figure. He no longer saw any of the other Jedi around him, the only thing he could see was the figure in black surrounded by flames. Frozen in place, he couldn't think.
"Anakin Skywalker…" it spoke.
"No…no…" Anakin muttered, shaking his head. "No…"
"I have already won…you cannot escape your destiny…"
Anakin let out a wail. From a place deep inside himself, he found strength he did not know he had. He scuttled away, not even bothering to stand up. Mace made no attempt to stop him as he grabbed his lightsaber.
Suddenly the vision vanished. The entryway returned to its usual splendor.
Anakin stared at everyone in surprise. No one said a word.
"I…I have to go…I can't stay here…I made a great mistake…" Anakin gasped, getting to his feet. "I can't stay here…I can't ever come back…"
"Anakin!" Obi-Wan called after him. "Anakin, wait!"
The only words he got for an answer were, "I can't come back…I don't know if I can ever come back…"
In the Temple hangar bay, Anakin hopped into his modified starfighter. For a second he sat in the cockpit, completely numb. He wondered where he was going to go…
Just then, the words he said earlier that day, at a moment that seemed a lifetime ago, came back to him. It was the perfect place for him to retreat to. Strapping himself in, he punched in the coordinates to the navicomp and darted off before the landing pad had fully extended from the Temple.
As soon as he cleared Coruscant's atmosphere, the setting sun casting an unearthly glare on the planet, Anakin punched his starfighter into hyperspace. Settling into his seat, he let himself sink into the Force as much as he dared, with the ship's navigation systems set to alert him when he arrived at Stalynia.
In no time at all, it seemed, the computer began beeping at him. Coming out of his trance instantly, Anakin piloted the fighter into the planet's atmosphere, guiding it down close to the surface. Blue oceans sprawled out before Anakin. To his right, he could see the vast plains of the continent. To his right, there was nothing but water.
So much water. It was amazing to him. Oceans, or any vast bodies of water, fascinated him ever since he first saw them on his earliest travels with Obi-Wan.
Obi-Wan.
The recollection of his old master put a scowl on his face. Guiding the light starfighter down, Anakin began to see settlements along the coast. Usually, he might have asked his R4 unit to scan for details on them, but the Force told him where to go. There was a perfect spot, a good distance from any settlement that was close to the coast and a little inland at the same time. Here he would be safe from any seastorms.
Anakin landed the small craft, and leaned back in his seat for a second. Gathering his thoughts, he popped the hatch and hopped out.
The freshest, sweetest air he ever breathed met his lungs. Unlike the air on Tatooine it was not dry and coarse as if the very air itself had sand in it. Unlike the air on Coruscant, it lacked the constant mechanical and filtered quality that made it just barely tolerable. And as for the air in the starfighter, there was simply no comparison.
Reaching out with the Force, he could sense no beings coming near him. Anakin knew that the planet had a population of sentient beings. However, they did not take part in the Republic, choosing instead to keep to their lone planet and live their simple lives.
As far as Anakin knew, the Menslechen, the humanoid species that inhabited Menslech spoke only a vague form of Basic, their name for the planet meaning something along the lines of "pure and beautiful".
Walking around for a few steps, Anakin surveyed the immediate territory. Chirping noises came from the tall grasses, they rustled around him as he moved. Instantly he knew they were full of many species of insects. That thought put a slight frown on his face. Quickly he erased it; insects were a problem that could easily be overcome.
Other than the potential bother of the insects, this place seemed quite perfect. It was quiet, it was peaceful…and no one would think to track him here. For a few days, maybe longer he didn't know, he could stay here and rest.
Suddenly, something flashed through the Force. Instantly, Anakin whipped out his lightsaber, whirling around to face the enemy.
However nothing was there. Only the chirping of the grass insects met his senses. Shrewdly he glanced around the area again, seeing nothing he had not spotted before. Anakin knew he was being watched though. He kept his lightsaber ignited for a few more seconds, then shut it off and clipped it to his belt.
He turned, looking out to the ocean. Whatever it was would be dealt with. Nothing, absolutely nothing, was going to disturb him out here.
To be continued...