I'm very glad that my story seems to be well-received! When I posted the first chapter, I was afraid that I would get a lot of harsh reviews. As Dad always says, I'm much too shy and skittish for my own good! Of course, he's the one who also insists that I definitely don't get it from his side of the family:)
But the reviews that I keep getting really make me feel all warm inside and motivate me to write to the best of my abilities! Thank you very much, guys!
Stephanie C: Jedi Master Luminara Unduli is, indeed, a character from the Star Wars Universe. She is a tall woman, with yellowish-green skin and blue eyes. She is a Mirialan, from the planet of Mirial. She and her former Padawan, Bariss Offee are famous for their dual fighting style, each being able to guess the other's moves and strike in a perfect tandem. She is also one of my favorite Jedi Masters, along with Shaak Ti and Plo Koon.
Phew! Very difficult chapter to write! The time has arrived for Anakin to finally choose his path. Also, Nizzy's Guardian must teach his young protégé a harsh lesson.
Chapter XII – The Darkness Within the Light
Unnamed ore-hauler, Unknown Star-System, 5.000 years A. B. N.
A strong shudder gripped the small ship and made it shake violently, almost tumbling over its axis. A loud screech could be heard over the low rumble.
It was the sound of the realspace engines activating.
The ore-hauler had exited hyperspace.
Nizzy's head collided with the durasteel bulkhead and the girl tightened her lips against the blossoming pain. She felt confused, as large, colorful spots danced at the periphery of her vision.
"Easy, child" spoke the Guardian, placing his translucent fingers on the girl's forehead. She could feel warm energy enter her head and ease her pain.
"Thank you" she whispered, hugging her knees closer to her body.
"You are welcome" the spirit said, as he looked around, with a frown over his features.
"What's happening?"
"Apparently, we have exited hyperspace."
Nizzy clamped down on the sudden urge to fire a retort somewhere along the lines of: Well, that's pretty clear, Mr. Obvious! Instead, she asked:
"That means we've arrived at Coruscant, right?"
"No."
"What do you mean?"
"The journey to Coruscant should have lasted another standard day. We have only traveled half of the required distance?"
"Then why are we stopping?"
"I do not, know, child" the Guardian answered, thoughtfully. "There could be any number of reasons, from a technical failure to . . . "
But he didn't get to finish his sentence, as a voice rang through the ship's intercom:
"Everyone, please stay calm! We will be passing through the nebula in realspace and we will jump into hyperspace at the other end! There is nothing to worry about!
He was trying desperately to make his voice sound calm.
And was failing miserably.
"What nebula?" asked Nizzy, confused. "What's he talking about?"
I suggest we take a look" said the spirit, pointing to the hatch that sealed the small compartment in which they were hiding.
Nizzy nodded ascent and slowly pushed open the hatch, peeking out to see if anyone was about.
"It's all clear" she whispered, emerging from the crammed compartment and into the cargo bay.
The bay was devoid of any sentient life: the only thing which occupied the empty space was a massive mound of Cyliisian ore.
"Follow me" requested the spirit and started to climb up the mound, in order to get on the other side of the bay. Nizzy followed suit, taking extra care not to trip on the jagged pieces of rock. The girl bit her lip a few times, as her wounded leg throbbed when she tried to settle her weight on it.
"Don't cross if you can't" advised the Guardian, who had reached the other side.
"No, I can make it" denied Nizzy, stubbornly, gritting her teeth against the occasional needle of pain. "I won't let a dead guy beat me at climbing!"
The specter could only smile at the purposeful light that shined in the young girl's eyes.
Indeed, we are more alike than you can imagine, child.
Watching her struggle against the odds brought a warm feeling in the old Emperor's heart. A feeling that he hadn't felt for thousands of years, not since her birth . . .
No! He ordered his own mind. The Past is the Past, no matter how much one looks upon it and wishes that things had been different!
His mind quieted, at the harshness of his own rebuke. Still he couldn't stop his thoughts from wandering to a nexus of Fate, so many years ago . . .
The young woman lay on the marble floor, covered in her own blood. Her white jumpsuit was torn and shredded. A dark bruise had formed above her left eye. Her chest was rising and falling, as she struggled to breathe.
He called her name, running across the room, begging the Force that she would survive.
He fell to his knees besides her. His hands cupped her face gently, as he called out her name repeatedly, willing her to wake up.
And her eyes opened. Twin jewels of the deepest velvet blue, like the depths of the ocean. Her swollen lips formed a pale smile, as she gazed upon him.
His heart raced in his chest, as he supported her back with his hands, helping her rise. As she buried her face in his shoulder, he could smell the faint scent of Alderaani jasmine. Her favorite perfume.
He felt her warm blood pour on his chest, staining his dark robe, but he didn't care. She was safe in his arms and always would be. Nothing would change that.
Her battered visage rose and he could see the deep pain in her eyes. She was dying.
No!
He had gripped her delicate shoulders with his fingers, felt her flinch in pain. He had shaken her roughly, as if that would keep Death away.
Her head kept dangling from side to side, like a puppet on strings. Her beautiful eyes were glassy and she was clearly losing her focus.
He begged her to hold on, that help would soon arrive, but he was not sure if she could hear him anymore.
He felt her small frame relax in his crushing hold and almost roared in desperation. He could not lose her too! Death had taken all of his loved ones! Why should his only child pay for his mistakes?
Her head tilted back and he gazed into her surreal eyes once more.
So much like his own.
The small smile was still on her lips, as she raised a trembling hand with delicate fingers, to stroke his silver hair, as if reassuring him that everything would be fine.
It would not be.
And then her eyes closed and she slumped on the floor, completely motionless.
Death had taken her.
No, no it hadn't, he reminded himself, as he struggled to pull himself from his memories and back into the Present. No, she had still been alive, just barely. If only he had known the truth! The Galaxy would have had been spared much pain and sorrow if he had known that she had been alive.
"Hey, ground control to flight one? Anyone in there?"
The spirit focused in front of him, where Nizzy, who had crossed the mound was flapping her arms, in order to get his attention.
"Yes, young one, I am here."
"What happened? You were staring blankly ahead, mumbling something to yourself."
"I was just reminiscing about the past." he explained evasively.
When he saw the girl's inquisitive look, he added:
"It is of no importance. Let us focus on the here and now."
With that, he turned and walked to the only window in the bay, a small observation port. Nizzy followed him, reluctantly burying the pile of questions that she wanted to ask.
Did he always need to be this mysterious?
"Come, Nisadora! You are wasting time!"
Apparently, the answer was yes.
Nizzy approached the window and stopped alongside her Guardian. When she cast her yes out, the only thing that she saw was an obscure yellow haze.
"This is why we stopped?" she asked, incredulously. "A nebula?"
The spirit remained silent, squinting his eyes, as if trying to make out some unseen details.
"Aren't starships supposed to pass right through nebula clouds without dropping from hyperspace?"
"Not through this one" he answered quietly.
Nizzy raised her eyebrows, in a silent query.
"Just watch, Nisadora. You will see."
The girl nodded and started watching the scenery outside. The nebula cloud was truly beautiful, like sparkling waves of shimmersilk, beaded with diamonds which shined with the intensity of small suns.
The glittering waves seemed to part, allowing the bulky ship to gently glide through. The light from within the nebula hit Nizzy's eyes with such intensity, that the girl had to raise her arm over her face.
But it was indeed beautiful.
Light in its purest form.
Nizzy looked at her companion, who was deathly silent. He didn't seem very impressed by the beauty before him: his face was grim and his eyes looked as if they were chiseled in stone. No emotion could be read in them. The light from outside played on his harsh features, casting long shadows and making him seem very dark and frightening.
Nizzy felt a cold shudder run down her spine. She wasn't supposed to fear her own Guardian! He was the Jedi-Emperor and had been one of the Galaxy's greatest leaders . . .
But many stories told very gruesome things about him: that he had ordered orbital bombardments on planets which had opposed him, that he had his enemies murdered in secret and that an army of concubines was subjected to his every whim.
And yet other legends said the exact opposite: that he had been a virtuous man, living his entire life in celibacy, raising his only daughter, the future Empress; that under his benevolent reign the entire Galaxy had bloomed and prospered.
By now, Nizzy felt thoroughly confused. She didn't know exactly what to believe of her Guardian. And the fact that he shrouded himself in mystery didn't help improve the situation.
"You wish to ask me something" he stated, not taking his eyes off the window.
Nizzy gaped for a few seconds, until she remembered that he was a Force-user and probably could sense her shifting mood.
"Yes" she said, almost shyly. "I wanted to know if . . . if you're evil?"
The specter turned from the window and toward her. For just a second, Nizzy could see a brief flash of intense pain show in his eyes and in his features, before he controlled himself and the stone mask covered his face once more.
"Define evil." he said, gazing pointedly at her.
"What?"
"Define your conception of what evil is."
Nizzy frowned. She hadn't expected for him to ask her to explain what evil exactly was.
She didn't know if she could give him an answer.
"Evil" she began, hesitating, "is a person who harms others for pleasure. Who destroys something because he enjoys the feeling. Who wants to control everything just because he can"
"It that is your definition of evil" he stated, on such a cold tone that it gave Nizzy goose bumps, "to meet its demands, I would have had to kill you in the most painful way possible . . ."
Nizzy remained rooted to the spot, waiting for him to finish, with her heart hammering wildly in her chest.
The spirit leaned forward, so that he and the child were now looking eye to eye.
". . . and enjoy it as well."
Nizzy could only nod dumbly, as she stared in his blue eyes, which had now become as icy as a glacier's heart.
"Good" he stated, raising himself and turning back to the window.
The girl watched the nebula again, but her mind wasn't entranced by its beauty, as before.
Regardless of what tales are true, she remembered her Uncle tell her, one thing is constant in all of them: they all agree that the Jedi-Emperor was a very dangerous man. Probably the most dangerous in the galaxy. Very few people had the courage to openly contradict him. He had a way of making his point accepted, that almost no one dared rise against him.
Now, she saw, in the man's sharp features that her Uncle hadn't been far from the truth.
"We are all dangerous, in our own way" he whispered, not bothering to look at her. "You, my dear, can be very dangerous as well. It depends how those around you look upon you. If they are weak, they will quickly submit to your will and tremble at your every word. And they will consider you dangerous. But they wouldn't be brave enough to do anything about it."
"Is that what happened to you?"
"Somewhere along those lines, yes. When a strong individual arises, it is normal that an army of weaklings would flock to his side, seeking protection. Individuals that could not stand up on their own legs or make their own voices heard. And for that protection, they would have to pay the price of unconditionally obeying their leader's orders."
"You're pretty cynical" Nizzy blurted out, before she could stop herself, by clamping a palm over her mouth.
The Guardian looked at her, a glint of humor shining in his eyes.
"Countless years of leading a wayward Galaxy have made me this way. I will never be the idealistic youth that I have once been. I have seen and done too much to be able to consider myself innocent or naïve ever again."
This only piqued the girl's curiosity even more, but when she opened her mouth to ask another question, the Emperor swiftly interrupted her:
"Enough, Nisadora! I believe that every man has a right to his privacy! And I certainly do not want to spend the rest of this journey answering questions about myself to a girl who is barely starting to understand the meaning of the word puberty!"
Nizzy felt her cheeks flush crimson, at the specter's harsh rebuke. Opting for the safest way out of the predicament, she wisely chose to keep quiet.
The spirit appeared to enjoy the silence, as he continued to stare outside, as if in search of something elusive, his face as unreadable as ever.
The girl sighed. How long would it take to clear this annoying nebula and jump into hyperspace again? She desperately missed her Uncle Dax and wanted to see him more than anything.
Destiny, however, apparently enjoyed leading her on a merry chase around the Galaxy, on an old rust bucket and with an unhinged poltergeist as a companion.
Wonderful! The Force surely must have discovered its sense of humor, morbid as it was.
Nizzy wanted to flop down on the pile of rocks and just forget everything around her, when she noticed her Companion suddenly grow tense. Her eyes instantly snapped toward the window, where she could see something extraordinary: the craft was reaching an empty spot, in the middle of the sparkling cloud. Soon, she would be able to see the heart of the nebula! Her Uncle had told her that the center of a nebula was truly spectacular, burning almost as bright as a new-born star.
The old ore-hauler slowly entered the clearing, as Nizzy held her breath and the specter stood saber-straight, his eyes focused ahead.
The shimmering veils parted in front of them and they could finally see . . .
Nizzy felt her held breath whoosh out of her lungs and her blood seemed to freeze in her veins, in horror. She stared, unable to comprehend the scene laid out before her.
Where the nebula's bright heart should have been stood . . . nothing. The center of the cloud was pitch black, contrasting with the light that surrounded it.
"What the . . . ?"
"This is the reason we couldn't continue on our hyperspace trajectory" the Guardian explained, grimly. "A black hole."
For the second time in the last hour, Nizzy felt completely speechless. No words in any language could put together her shock at the tableau in front of her eyes. No matter how hard she tried to pass through the black depths with her eyes, all that she always saw was darkness.
Darkness in its purest form.
"How . . . how did it get here?" she finally managed to find her voice.
"A supernova explosion" the spirit replied. "This entire area, up until recently, was the home of a very large star. It lived a long life, but, eventually, its end came. It grew and grew, doubling and tripling in its size."
"And it exploded?"
"No. With such an immense mass, her own gravity pulled her into herself. It was the opposite of an explosion. An implosion."
"And then?"
"This black hole was created. It has such a strong gravity pull, that it will drag anything inside it. Even Light."
Nizzy shuddered. She did not want to imagine what would happen to a starship that was dragged inside the Darkness.
"It is so strong that it even distorts the fabric of Time and Space around it." said the spirit, pointing to the hole's edges, where Nizzy could see misty matter swirling like a cyclone.
"Will it pull us inside?"
"Not likely. The pilot is keeping the ship at a safe distance."
The two watched the spectacle, as the ship once more entered the golden veils of the nebula.
"I never would have imagined that it was here" the girl whispered, "that it can be hidden behind such beauty."
"And that, my dear, is what dragged many unwary space-explorers to their doom. They only looked at the Light, thinking that no danger could befall them. But you must remember this, child: Darkness can exist within the Light! And just as you saw here, many are fooled by a pleasant appearance, their eyes blinded to the darker truth."
From the bitter expression on his face, Nizzy judged that he was talking from personal experience, but stopped herself in time from asking another question. Instead, she focused on the only common ground that they had forged between them.
"I want to know more about what happened in the Past. Did Obi-Wan and Anakin manage to stop Palpatine?"
The Guardian smiled sadly, placing his fingers on the girl's forehead.
"We are all blinded to the truth by our desires, child" he answered cryptically. "A very wise man taught me this, a long time ago."
Nizzy could only feel the fabric of Time twist around her, as her consciousness returned to the Past . . .
x x x
Planet Coruscant, Star System Coruscant, 13 years A. B. N.
Night was cradling the planet of Coruscant in its dark wings. In the sky, the pale stars twinkled, but their light was overshadowed by the thousands of colorful displays which covered the city's skyscrapers.
A long, aerodynamic skiff was blasting through the traffic lanes, with what some would call "insane speed". The pilot appeared to be very gifted, for not a single scratch could be seen on the craft's fuselage, despite the fact that it had passed nearly millimeters from several walls.
"Please, Anakin, be careful!" pleaded Obi-Wan from his seat, his finger holding frantically on the headboard.
"We have no time for that!" Anakin answered sharply, making another dangerous turn.
Obi-Wan sighed and drew in a deep breath, to calm himself.
"Let me get this straight" he inquired. "You and Padme have been married for . . . "
"Three years. Since after the battle of Geonosis."
"And you managed to keep it a secret from myself and the Council all of these years."
"Yes."
"But why, Anakin?" the older man asked, the pain and disappointment lining his voice. "Why didn't you tell me? I thought you trusted me."
Anakin shook his head slightly, as her remained focused on piloting the skiff.
"I don't know if I trust you anymore" he answered in a whisper. "Not after all that has happened."
"I should be the one to say that about you, Anakin!" Obi-Wan retorted, harshly. "After all of the foolish things that you have done, you still say that you cannot trust me?
Anakin man remained silent, his expression cold and forlorn.
Obi-Wan tapped his fingers on the control panel, watching as they quickly passed through several traffic lanes, leaving a stream of bewildered pilots in their wake.
"Anakin" the Jedi began, more softly, "I know that I haven't been here for you lately. If that has made you lose your faith in me, I am deeply sorry."
The young man turned to his former teacher, who was staring blankly ahead, pain and regret shining in his eyes.
"I clearly haven't been a good Master to you" he continued, his voice almost at breaking point "if you chose to seek understanding and comfort elsewhere."
Anakin felt like a saber had been run through his chest, at hearing his Master's self-accusatory words.
"No, Master!" he said, feeling a wave of shame pass through him. "No, you have been like a father to me!"
"And yet you do not have any faith left in me" Obi-Wan stated, with a sad smile.
"I . . . I thought you were trying to turn me against Palpatine. That you were in the Council's plot."
"Anakin, the Council has no secret plot to take over the Republic! Those are just Palpatine's lies, to sway you on his side!"
"They seemed very real to me" he answered, avoiding making eye contact with Obi-Wan.
"Because he made you believe them. Because you wanted to believe them. If what you said is true, then he is a Sith Lord! They are masters at the art of manipulation!"
"Right now" Anakin sighed, leaning deeper in his seat, "I honestly don't know what or who to believe! Everything is so confusing! There is no clear line between good and evil anymore!"
"And there never was" Obi-Wan replied, somberly. "No one can say with certainty where the Light ends and the Darkness begins. And that is exactly the Jedi's task, Anakin: to try and guess where that border lies and stay away from it!"
"He promised me that he could save Padme" the young man murmured to himself, as he avoided a collision with a freight train.
"A Sith only uses his promises to achieve his goals."
"And the Jedi don't do the same?" Anakin snapped, his temper rising once more.
"Probably" Obi-Wan answered, silently.
Anakin stared at his mentor, shocked. That definitely wasn't the answer that he was expecting!
Obi-Wan chuckled, seeing the expression of his younger friend's face.
"The Jedi are not perfect, Anakin, even though the vast majority of the Galaxy's inhabitants consider us so. We are not Gods, but Mortals. And Mortals can make mistakes. They can have flaws."
The young Knight continued to listen attentively.
"We all have our own defects, be they large or small. Vanity, greed, lust, vengeance can all be found in a Jedi, just as in a normal sentient. But what separates us from the rest of the world, what gives us the aura of mystique that everybody seems to covet is our ability to battle with our own weaknesses and win! That is the entire purpose of the Jedi discipline: to train one's spirit to be strong in the face of temptation. Small sins can be, to a Jedi, almost as dangerous as the Darkside itself!"
Anakin looked in Obi-Wan's eyes. The older man's misty gaze held far more wisdom that his years should have normally allowed.
"I will not try to portray us as saints, Anakin, for we are not. We are living, breathing sentients, who can make mistakes! And who can find the power within ourselves to right our own wrongs."
The ear-splitting sound of a horn could be heard and Anakin slammed his hands on the controls, sending the skiff in a dive, as a cargo ship passed through the spot where they had been mere moments before.
"That was close" Anakin said, bringing the skiff back on course.
"Don't do that ever again!" Obi-Wan reprimanded, massaging an ugly bruise on his forehead. "I almost cracked my skull on this blasted windshield!"
"Sorry, Master" the young Knight promptly answered, like he had done so many times during his time as a Padawan, smiling slightly.
Obi-Wan tried to scowl and give the appearance of sternness, but he ended grinning as well; in moments like these, he couldn't stop himself from remembering the happier times that he and his pupil had shared.
"I never thought about the Order in that manner" Anakin said, becoming serious once more. "I always thought that a Jedi Master was supposed to be the epitome of perfection!"
"But he is not" Obi-Wan countered, gloomily. "And Palpatine probably used your uncertainty as a weapon against you, to bring you even more off focus."
"I still can't believe that he is the same devious Sith Lord that we have been tracking all these years! He . . . is too kind, too understanding . . ."
"I know this is hard for you to accept, but that has been just a façade that he has used to protect his true self. Unfortunately, he has been so good at deception that not even Master Yoda sensed anything wrong up until now."
"And he always listened to me" Anakin continued, placing his palm over his forehead, to calm an incoming headache. "Has always been there for me, through thick and thin."
Obi-Wan watched Anakin, feeling the battle within his soul through their bond. He felt a deep sadness resonate in him as well, because he could see clearly that his words were only causing the young man even further confusion, instead of helping him settle his problems.
Anakin raised his eyes from the controls toward the windshield, through which he could see the huge dome of the Senate looming closer and closer. Their journey neared its end . . .
"Whatever the truth in this entire mess is" he stated, with finality in his tone, "I will soon find out!"
Deftly maneuvering the craft, he entered the large hangar and placed it down on a platform.
"Anakin" Obi-Wan intervened, just as the young man was opening the glass canopy, to get out, "please remember that, no matter what happens this night, I will always love you as the brother that I never had. Whatever Palpatine may say, please remember our bond."
"Thank you, Obi-Wan" Anakin answered, hesitatingly. Although he was struggling to keep up a calm and controlled appearance, the powerful emotions that racked his soul could be heard in his voice.
"You're welcome, Padawan" Obi-Wan said, patting him lightly on the back. "I am here for you, remember that."
Anakin nodded, jumping down from the skiff, followed by Obi-Wan. The two men quickly started walking in a brisk pace, leaving the hangar and entering the equally empty corridors of the Senate.
They passed countless rows of doors, entire flights of stairs, large marble sculptures and paintings of idyllic corners of the Galaxy. Their eyes, however, didn't see anything of the environment. The only goal toward which they focused all of their undivided attention was reaching Palpatine's office, as fast as possible.
May the Force grant me strength and wisdom, Obi-Wan prayed silently, in his mind. May it give me the resolve to protect my brother from the Darkness.
You will be his guide, an unknown voice echoed through the Force, but the final choice will ultimately be his. His Destiny rests solely in his own hands.
Obi-Wan blinked, startled. He had an odd sense of deja-vu, as though he had heard that voice in the past. Shaking his head in denial, he attributed the whole thing to stress and quickened his pace to keep up with Anakin, who was barely controlling himself from jumping into a sprint.
Finally, they managed to reach the large, wooden doors that lead into the Chancellor's office. Sid doors were nearly ripped to shreds, dangling from their hinges.
The two men slowly made their way inside, with a growing sense of dread. Something was definitely not right.
The hallway of the office was completely dark, with no light penetrating the gloom. A dank, putrid smell hung heavily in the air, making both Jedi flinch. They had felt the vile scent many times during the war.
It was charred flesh.
"Look" Anakin whispered, pointing to a large, dark blotch, barely visible on the floor.
"What is it?" Obi-Wan asked, already dreading the answer.
"Coagulated blood" Anakin said, his voice hollow, devoid of any emotion. "A Jedi fell here."
Obi-Wan closed his eyes for a few seconds. He did not want to think about the Knight that died in such a gruesome way. Maybe it had been one of his long time friends in the Temple.
"Master!" Anakin whispered, motioning ahead. Obi-Wan nodded imperceptibly, swallowed the bitter bile that rose in his mouth and followed the younger man, entering the main office. Here, they both froze, bewildered by the scene that played out in front of them: Supreme Chancellor Palpatine was slumped on the floor, struggling to keep a red-bladed saber in his hands and Jedi Master Mace Windu used all of his strength to batter said blade away and deliver the fatal strike.
"Anakin!" shrieked Palpatine, his eyes growing wide with relief and exhilaration. "You're here!"
The Chancellor's scream made Mace's eyes snap toward the two newcomers, in shock.
"Kenobi! Skywalker! What are you doing here?"
"Let him go!" Anakin said on a dangerous tone, before Obi-Wan could respond.
"Of course not, Knight Skywalker!" Mace denied, his dark eyes flashing.
"Let him go!" Anakin didn't relent, his voice lowering even more. "Now!"
"Please, calm down" Obi-Wan pleaded, reaching out for him, but Anakin moved away from him.
"Anakin, he wants to kill me!" Palpatine whimpered, his sagely features contorted by fear.
"Not if I have a say in the matter!" the young Knight advanced, intently.
"Knight Skywalker" Mace barked, sharply, "for your own good, stay out of this!"
"Anakin, he is not to be trusted!"
The tall man stopped in his advance, his blue eyes searching Palpatine's face for answers.
"I told you that they were traitors!" the Chancellor ranted, looking as if he was near hysteria. "Traitors, all of them!"
"The Jedi have always been faithful to the Republic!" Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes at Palpatine. "Do not accuse us of committing the sins that are rightfully yours!"
"Obi-Wan" Anakin whispered, tensely "stay out of this."
"I will not sit around and watch him have his way with you! Listen to me . . . "
Before he could finish his plea, an invisible, crushing wave of the Force slammed into him, making him slam his head in a wall.
For the briefest of moments, the look of utter fear on Palpatine's face was replaced with a dark, foreboding smile, only to be replaced by terror again. The chance was so swift that no one witnessed it.
Obi-Wan groaned, trying to clear his head of the intense pain he was feeling. A warm trickle on the left side of his face let him know that he was bleeding.
Anakin stood still, watching with mute horror as his Master rose, leaning on the wall for support, the entire left side of his face scraped and full of blood.
"Knight Skywalker!" Mace exclaimed, incredulously. "What in the Force's name are you doing?"
"Very good, Anakin" Palpatine goaded him on. "Show these infidels the true meaning of justice!"
Anakin couldn't move a muscle, as his almost pain-numbed mind sup around in circles. The Jedi had taught him all he knew – The Jedi were traitors. Obi-Wan was his mentor and truly loved him – Obi-Wan was using him for his own selfish purposes. Palpatine understood and supported him – Palpatine was the Sith Lord that he was sworn to destroy.
Where, in this ocean of lies, does the truth lie?
Trust your feelings, Anakin. They will guide you to the Light.
Anakin's heart somersaulted in his chest, as he looked at his Master. Obi-Wan had spoken in his mind, through their link.
Remember the bond of brothers that we both share.
Anakin swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. After viciously lashing out at him, Obi-Wan still wanted to help him?
I am here for you, my friend.
Suddenly, an inhuman cry filled the room, as Mace's saber managed to slightly make contact with Palpatine's shoulder. The old man screamed once again, tears spilling down his withered cheeks.
"Anakin! Please . . . save me, my son!"
"Don't you dare interfere, Skywalker!" threatened Windu.
"I beg of you, Master Windu" Anakin said, in a hoarse whisper, "don't kill him! I need him alive!"
"He is much too dangerous to be kept alive! He has full control of the Senate and the courts!"
"Please! I need him to save my wife's life!"
Mace's eyes widened, in bafflement.
"Your . . . wife?"
Palpatine started cackling madly, making all of the three men flinch.
"Kill me, if you have the courage, Windu!" he taunted, a brief glimmer of orange lighting his eyes.
"I most certainly have!" the dark-skinned Master snarled, bringing his blade down in a devastating ark.
No!
Anakin felt as if time had slowed down around him. He could see Mace's purple blade swinging down to cut Palpatine in half: could hear the Chancellor's cried mixed with maniacal laughter: could see his last chance slip through his fingers.
No!
His hand tightened around the hilt of his lightsaber. With an impossibly fast move, he ignited the cerulean blade. With one leap, he was at Mace's side, blocking his deadly attack merely centimeters from the Chancellor's exposed body. He slammed into Mace, hitting him in the stomach with his elbow and making him double over in pain. Gripping his hands, he twisted, throwing the tall Master over his shoulder and into the other side of the room, where he hit the floor, with a sickening crack.
The sound of bones breaking.
But the tormented Knight was past caring.
Walking with small steps, he knelt next to Palpatine, extending his gloved hand, to help him get up.
"Anakin" the old man murmured, rising slowly "I knew you wouldn't let me down! I knew it!"
He offered Anakin a rare, kind, luminous smile, which made the young man almost soar with relief.
"Are you alright?" he asked, helping Palpatine keep his balance.
"Not very much, thanks to you, my young friend" he answered on a warm, fatherly tone.
Anakin!
The Knight almost jumped when he heard Obi-Wan scream inside his mind. Turning around, he saw Obi-Wan kneeling next to Mace. The tall Master was completely motionless and a dark strand of liquid flowed from one of the corners of his mouth.
The enormity of what he had just done struck Anakin with the force of a meteorite. He had taken the life of a fellow Jedi. A Council member, for that matter. And he had done so willingly.
What have I done?
He let go of Palpatine and looked at his hands, in horror.
"What . . . have I . . . done?"
"It is of now consequence, Anakin" Palpatine tried to comfort him, on the same fatherly tone. "He was nothing more than a traitor and he deserved to die."
"No" Anakin spoke so quietly, that even someone sitting next to him would have had trouble hearing him. "No, he didn't deserve death. No one deserves that."
"Do not let your conscience cloud your judgment, boy!"
Palpatine's harsh words made Obi-Wan turn his misty eyes toward him.
"Conscience" he spoke, calmly "is the most precious gift in the Universe. Without it, we would all be like you! Heartless manipulators, who only care about total domination!"
"Look who's talking" Palpatine, huffed, with annoyance. "The Jedi Order has manipulated the entire Galaxy all of these years, tricking it into believing its defenders are saints!"
"We have our flaws" agreed Obi-Wan, approaching Palpatine, with an intense blaze burning in his sea-blue eyes "but we do not let ourselves be dominated by them!"
Palpatine's rakish grin seemed to get even wider, as he studied the Jedi Master.
"Anakin" he quietly addressed his protégé, "remember what I told you? That your Master is not to be trusted? That he has always whispered his perfect lies in your ears?"
"I do not lie!" Obi-Wan said, his fists clenching slightly. Looking at Anakin, he spoke more gently:
"I have never lied to you, my friend. Nor would I ever do it. I . . . have even broken the Jedi Code for you."
This time, both Palpatine and Anakin wore expressions of bewilderment.
"What do you mean?" Anakin asked, slowly.
"The Code forbids attachments, other than the bond of Master and Apprentice. In our case, however, that bond is much stronger. I told you that I love you like a son. I haven't lied. If what I feel for you is a direct violation of the Code, then our laws definitely need to change!"
The two men gazed at each other for a few moments, Obi-Wan's eyes shining with a warm affection as he regarded his former pupil.
"I don't want to lose you, Anakin. Not like I lost Qui-Gon."
The gentle Jedi's name brought back painful memories, which seemed to strike Anakin with a vengeance. He remembered all too clearly the night in the catacombs of Theed Royal Palace, when the mortal remains of Qui-Gon Jinn had been burned in a funeral pyre, in customary Jedi tradition.
"What will happen to me now?"
"The Council has granted me permission to train you. You will be a Jedi, I promise!"
That promise, that oath sworn thirteen years ago still held true. It still united the two with almost unbreakable chains.
Almost.
"How touching" Palpatine demurred, disdainfully. "If I wanted to listen to useless sentimental drivel, I would have bought a ticket at the theater!"
Lifting his pale hands, the Chancellor suddenly hurled deadly lightning bolts at Obi-Wan, fitting the Jedi Master head-on and throwing him back, atop the crumpled form of Mace Windu.
"Obi-Wan!" Anakin screamed, a part of himself wanting to run to his mentor's side, while the other part made him stay still.
"Why did you do that?" he asked, his eyes regarding Palpatine with barely restrained rage.
"He is of little importance, Anakin" the Sith Lord waved his hand, dismissively. "You will have to choose, my young friend."
"Choose?" Anakin growled, his gloved fingers curling around the hilt of his lightsaber.
"Between him and your wife" the Chancellor explained, smiling maliciously. "Between your desires and your duties."
Anakin's grip on the lightsaber tightened, as he realized that the moment of choice had finally come. No matter how much he had wished to delay it, the paths of his Fate were stretched out before him.
"Take your time, young man" Palpatine spoke, on the same fatherly tone. "But remember that the life of the one you love is in my hands!"
How could he? How could he choose between two sides of himself? How could he tear a part of his own Soul, maiming it forever?
What path you take now . . . will overshadow your entire life.
Anakin's heart skipped a beat, in shock. He clearly heard Obi-Wan's voice, speaking to him through their link! But how could that be, when the Jedi Master was lying unconscious, beside the body of Mace Windu?
Let me be your guide, Padawan! Don't shut me out!
The young Knight felt a chord within his self resonate at Obi-Wan's words. Despite all the pain that he had caused him, his teacher still found the inner power to maintain their link and support him!
Palpatine seemed to feel the turmoil within Anakin, for he approached, raising his hand in a gesture of peace.
"Join me Anakin" he pleaded, in a soft tone "and together we will end this nightmare."
"Yes" Anakin, whispered, his strength fading under the onslaught of the emotional storm that ravaged him "we will end this nightmare . . . "
Slowly, his gloved hand released the lightsaber and rose to take Palpatine's.
Be strong, Padawan! Trust your feelings!
Palpatine's smirk widened even more, as he saw that his moment of triumph was fast approaching.
If you cannot trust me, then have faith in the Force! It will show you the way!
Anakin's wary eyes closed of a moment, as he drew upon the steady current of the Force. It immediately responded to his touch, surrounding him like a mantle, bathing him in a sea of deep azure. He felt its healing energies flow through his weary body, instantly calming his anxieties.
But there was something even deeper . . . something drawing him, like a moth to a roaring flame. He plunged farther in the ocean of Light, letting in guide him.
And then, he felt it. The true importance of the moment showed itself to him.
With his mind's eye, he could see the nexus of Destiny, in which he currently found himself in. He could make put the divergent paths, intersecting in one common point, in one unique moment.
This moment.
He understood that the smallest act performed now, in the nexus, had the power to alter his life completely.
And he would not be able to do anything to stop the chance.
Open your eyes! See the truth!
And so he did. Palpatine still stood before him, his features set in a kind expression, his hand outstretched, mere centimeters from Anakin's gloved one.
The Chancellor's smile was much too wide . . . it was . . .
Fake.
And behind the sagely gaze of his eyes, he could now detect something much more sinister. A primal desire.
For possession.
Everything had been a lie.
The truth showed itself completely to Anakin's eyes. On the outside, nothing in his stance changed. On the inside, however, the tempest picked up its pace, howling madly. Wave after wave of feelings, from betrayal to hate, fury and others which could not be named in speech, coursed through him. They coalesced into one single, burning core, until it was too much to endure.
Until all that he wanted to do was forget everything and anything around him.
The core imploded, like supernova, in its final death throes. It collapsed under its own weight, until nothing was left.
Nothing but a gaping, black void, in the center of his soul.
Anakin felt only numbness, as the extent of the web of lies that the Chancellor had sown around him finally showed itself.
And it was a web without any way of escape. The spider had managed to ensnare the fly.
Do not lose hope, my brother! Have faith in yourself!
Only now did he understand how much his spirit had been twisted under the Sith Lord's careful ministrations, as he used his own desires against him.
As he blinded him to the truth, using his own desires.
Darkness can dwell within the Light, as a single entity. This only makes it all the more difficult to know which is which.
Anakin gazed at Palpatine. The Chancellor hadn't moved at all. He was so confident in the success of his plan, that he hadn't senses any of the revelations that had shaken the Knight to his very core.
But you have the power to differentiate them.
He could see, through small cracks, through the luminous exterior.
And into a soul as dark as night.
And you will make the right choice!
"I grow tired of waiting, young man" Palpatine sighed, showing the first signs of annoyance. "Or do you wish to throw away the life of the one you love?"
"I will never do that!" Anakin said, a new strength lining his voice. "But neither will I betray the ideals to which I have pledged myself!"
Palpatine only resumed to raising one eyebrow.
"You want my soul, in exchange for the secret of life, but it is a price that I wont pay!"
As his gloved hand fell limply at his side, the cobalt fire of his eyes seemed to intensify.
"You are denying your Destiny?" Palpatine asked, this time truly surprised.
"My Destiny is my own to decide!"
"I hope you realize that, in denying my help, you forfeit your wife's life!"
"There are . . . other ways . . . to do battle with Fate" Obi-Wan whispered, struggling to regain consciousness. "Ways that . . . do not pass beneath . . . the shroud of the Darkside."
Palpatine's gaze returned to Anakin, his eyes having lost all of their earlier warmth.
"This is my final answer, Lord Sidious" the young man declared, gathering the last vestiges of his strength. "I will not become that which I am sworn to destroy!"
The Sith Lord regarded Anakin for a few moments, searching deep within his Soul for any traces of insecurity.
And found none.
"Very well" he stated, his voice sharp and raspy, his eyes glowing a menacing yellow. "If that is your choice, my friend, I am afraid that you will have to suffer the consequences!"
The entire office seemed to darken even more, as Palpatine's power began to show itself. The shadows grew longer, engulfing all traces of Light and the temperature instantly dropped a few degrees.
The Dark Lord of the Sith raised his ghostly hands, deadly tendrils of the Darkside engulfing the entire room in a halo of Death.