Chapter Six

As if awakening from a deep sleep, Obi-Wan felt somewhat disoriented following his transportation back in time. He opened his eyes slowly to discover he was once more on the rocky ledge overlooking the desert plains. In the distance, the threads of Force colors diminished in the sky with the sinking of the orange Tatooine suns. However, the blue hue was not among them. Obi-Wan made note of that. He would need to ask Qui-Gon what it meant.

Where was Qui-Gon anyway?

Before he had finished the thought, the ghostly apparition appeared to the left of Obi-Wan, standing tall and looking out over the vast plain.

"You know what I did." Obi-Wan stated solemnly, hoping he would not have to explain, but Qui-Gon affirmed with a nod.

"I do."

Obi-Wan waited patiently for further explanation, but received none. His curiousity soon got the better of him and he could not contain his irritation. "Well?"

Qui-Gon turned slowly and Obi-Wan could not help but notice the look of disappointment on his former Master's face. "Your actions created a great many changes, padawan."

Good? Bad? Indifferent?

"And?" Obi-Wan prompted after Qui-Gon's obvious hesitation.

An ethereal hand swept out over the plains, opening a vision shaded in blue of destruction, chaos, and darkness. The final image of the vision was the Jedi Temple in ruins, and the nightmarish scene of dead Jedi lying everywhere inside – just as before.

Obi-Wan slumped visibly in disappointment. He apparently had not made a difference after all. But what had happened?

"Anakin left the Jedi Order and was immediately hired as Chancellor Palpatine's personal bodyguard. He and Padmé married immediately."

The younger Jedi sighed with a shake of his head. He had held onto the slight hope that Anakin had changed his mind and stayed with the Jedi, but instead, he had thrown his apprentice right into the path of the most dangerous and evil being in the galaxy – Darth Sidious. In his focus to guide Anakin away from his obsession with Senator Amidala, he had completely overlooked the chancellor's influence on the young man.

Sith! How could he be so stupid?

"What about Padmé?" He asked as he rubbed a frustrated hand over his face.

"Senator Skywalker was involved in many of the chancellor's…shall we say, more questionable political maneuvers, and they eventually overthrew the Republic and destroyed the Jedi."

"Padmé helped Palpatine?" Obi-Wan's voice was laden with disbelief.

"She and Anakin apparently held quite a grudge against the Jedi, which makes me wonder. What in the stars did you say to her, Obi-Wan?"

Obi-Wan's hand once more ran over his face and then vigorously rubbed his eyes. He suddenly felt…old.

"Nothing that I thought would cause her to react in such a way."

So, everything was basically the same as it was before. But as Qui-Gon continued, Obi-wan realized that actually, it was much worse.

"Anakin killed Sidious and became the Sith Master. Padmé gave birth to a son they named Luke. He will someday be predecessor to the Sith Empire. Anakin is training him the ways of the Dark Side."

Obi-Wan felt sick. Not only had he pushed Anakin out of the Jedi Order much earlier than it had actually happened, but he had destroyed the only hope for the future that the Jedi had, by exposing Luke to his father and the Dark Side of the Force.

The last of the colored filaments were barely visible across the dimming skyline and Obi-Wan noticed that Qui-Gon was beginning to fade along with them.

"I only have three more chances, don't I?" He said quickly with sudden realization before Qui-Gon disappeared altogether.

"Yes." The reply was barely audible – a fading whisper against the advancing darkness.

"Make the best of them, padawan."