Chapter 20 – Sidious

Author's Note: The removal of Sidious from the equation was important. :') xDXD

~ Amina Gila

After talking with Anakin, the rest of the journey to Coruscant passes relatively quickly and quietly, maybe aided, in part, by the fact that Obi-Wan coaxed Anakin to rest once he found out how difficult it has been for him to sleep properly over the past month. Ahsoka comes to get them when they're approaching their destination, and it's with reluctance that Obi-Wan stops gently carding his fingers though Anakin's hair, his head is resting on Obi-Wan's thigh, and nudges him back to wakefulness.

It's late morning on Coruscant, and they can't do anything until late afternoon, when most of the Senate is ready, but they have to get everything set up. And to do that, they have to go to the Senate, which they do. They keep their shields locked tight as they traverse the halls, heading towards Padme's office. She has all her files stored here, as well as another copy elsewhere lest this one be destroyed, and she plans to make her transmission to the galaxy from her office. She'll be safe with Ahsoka so long as they destroy Sidious quickly and expediently.

The rest of the morning and early afternoon passes in a tense blur as they set everything up and double-check the information that Padme has compiled, looking for anything that might be missing or out of order. And then, they fret and stress and worry and wait. It's the waiting that's hard. It's the waiting that has Anakin twisting the cuff of his sleeve while Obi-Wan paces and strokes his beard. It's the waiting that has Ahsoka shifting restlessly every second, tapping her leg or her chair alternately while Padme keeps shifting items on her desk for no apparent reason.

And when it's time, Anakin looks as terrified as Obi-Wan feels. What they do now will either fix or destroy the galaxy, and they have no idea what the outcome will be. Either of them could die. All of them could die. And they don't have a say in that. They don't have a way of preventing that. All they're doing is their duty to the galaxy.

"It's not too late to leave," Anakin points out, tone casual. "We can still go back to Tatooine, get Lyla, and run off into Wild Space where no one will find us."

Obi-Wan hates that the offer is so tempting. But they can't leave. They can't get closure if they don't at least try. "We have to go, Anakin," he replies. "We both know we'll regret it if we don't." Besides, after everything that Sidious did to them both, after how he manipulated Anakin and torn the two of them apart, Obi-Wan won't deny that he wants revenge. Anakin is his. His Padawan, his best friend, his brother, his child. His. He won't let Sidious do the same thing again, and there will be something very satisfying about watching him die.

"True," Anakin concedes, looking back at Ahsoka and Padme. "Be careful, both of you."

Padme steps forwards, suddenly, walking up to Anakin. "You two," she replies, leaning up to give him a brief, fleeting kiss before stepping back, leaving Anakin staring at her in surprise, shock, and regret.

He merely nods before giving Ahsoka one final look and gesturing to Obi-Wan. Together, they leave Padme's office, keeping their hoods up the way they did when they first entered the building. The Senate guards hadn't questioned them, because it's not uncommon to see Jedi coming and going from the premises. Besides, Padme had said they were accompanying her before they could be questioned. They need to be discrete. There's no reason to attract any undue attention before they arrive at their destination.

Sidious is, predictably, in his office when they arrive, and the two Red Guards let them pass without question when they see Anakin. It makes Obi-Wan feel highly uncomfortable, knowing that Palpatine has ordered his own personal security to let Anakin pass at any time. It's… wrong, and he doesn't know why he never put a stop to it sooner. How could he not have seen what Palpatine was doing? It wasn't as if he didn't know there was something strange about a politician of Palpatine's rank taking interest in a young Padawan.

"Don't let him feel your guilt," Anakin says under his breath as they enter the office. Palpatine looks up when they approach, expression flickering from surprise to disbelief.

"Anakin and Master Kenobi, what a surprise," he smiles, expression warm and welcoming.

The fakeness of it makes Obi-Wan's skin crawl, and it takes all of his willpower not to punch Palpatine in the face on sight. He wants to kill him. He wants to make him suffer. Those are not Jedi thoughts, but they, and his anger, are things that he has long struggled with. He knows that, when he's hurt by an opponent, he always lets it be too personal, but he doesn't know how to break out of that mentality, not when he's looking at the man who did, and still could, destroy the entire Jedi Order and take Anakin from his side again.

"Last I heard, Anakin was considered missing-in-action," Palpatine continues, folding his hands on his desk. "Might I ask what happened? I have heard nothing from the Jedi Council."

"The Council does not know," Anakin states, voice strangely detached. He's not reacting to Palpatine's words at all, his shielding so tight that Obi-Wan can hardly feel him, even through their bond. He's struggling to control himself, to hide his darkness, lest he give them away too early. And Obi-Wan, likewise, is shielding far more than normal to hide how much his Force signature has changed. Palpatine can undoubtedly sense something, but he won't be able to figure out what is happening before they play their hand.

"Is something wrong?" the Chancellor asks, sounding almost alarmed. "I will help you however I can." Such a manipulator.

Anakin shrugs one shoulder. "Yes, I suppose one might say that something is wrong," he agrees, and Obi-Wan feels a flicker of eager bloodlust from him. His eyes though, are still blue. "In fact, I think something is very, very wrong here, Darth Sidious."

The momentary shock on Palpatine's face is real, of that Obi-Wan is certain. "What is this about, my boy?" he demands, voice sharper. He's not looking at Obi-Wan, though Obi-Wan is certain that he is still acutely aware of his presence. "What have the Jedi told you?"

"Not them. You," Anakin sneers, dropping his façade, expression twisting with hate. "You are Darth Sidious. You have been manipulating me for years. You want me to be your loyal apprentice, Darth Vader. I won't be. I refuse. I won't fall for it." Not again, echoes through their bond, and Obi-Wan reaches out to soothe him.

"We know who you really are, Chancellor," Obi-Wan adds with feigned politeness, "And I think you know why we are here."

"I see that the Jedi have sent you here to be my assassins," Sidious declares, the mask of Palpatine falling from his face as he rises. There is nothing of the elderly politician in his eyes now. All Obi-Wan can see is a Sith Lord, one who is even more deranged than Vader ever was. "So be it, then, Jedi."

Anakin laughs. "The Council doesn't know we're here. I ran because the Jedi tried to kill me. I am no Jedi." He drops his shielding, letting the darkness of his Force signature echo into the Force around him as he deliberately draws on the Dark Side, letting it bleed his eyes yellow.

"We are not Jedi," Obi-Wan affirms, more for the sake of those who will watch these recordings than for Sidious.

"How… curious," Sidious hums, a calculating gleam in his eyes. "Might I ask what led you to make these… revelations? What led you to embrace the Dark Side, Anakin?"

Something bitter and resentful flashes across Anakin's face. "You."

"Hm. I find it surprising that Master Kenobi is willing to go along with it, though. How can you be certain that he won't stab you in the back the moment he's finished with you?"

Obi-Wan seethes silently, inwardly, at the way Sidious is trying to turn them against each other. He's glad that they talked earlier on the ship, that they talked in the beginning when they first arrived. If they hadn't, Sidious would have a far greater chance at succeeding.

"Oh, he tried that once," Anakin answers casually, "And I dare say that we both have learned from our mistakes. We won't repeat them. You won't be able to turn us against each other, Sidious. We have nothing to hide from each other."

"Nothing at all?" Sidious raises an eyebrow, almost mocking. "You told him about your marriage, about your mother?"

"Yes," Anakin replies placidly, smugly. "Obi-Wan knows. I trust him with my life." The Force rings with the truth of his words, and Obi-Wan feels… well, he doesn't know how to feel at the Force's confirmation of Anakin trusting him so much. They had been that way, once, and he hopes they can be that way again in the future, even if they aren't there quite yet now.

"You poisoned our bond, Chancellor, but you also underestimated it," Obi-Wan interjects, needing to say this. "You can talk all you want, but you will fail. I trust Anakin. He won't let me down. We know what we need to do."

Sidious' expression is filled with fury, as he flicks his wrists, drawing two lightsabers. "Jedi or not, you will both fall. The galaxy will be mine, and you will not stop me."

In unison, Anakin and Obi-Wan draw their own lightsabers and step forwards to meet their enemy. There is only one acceptable outcome of this battle, one which Obi-Wan will see through to the best of his ability. There are no limitations for him here; he has but one goal, and he'll do whatever he must to reach it.

The Force is with them, flowing around them, through them, and in the Force, Obi-Wan can sense that Sidious is meant to die. Or perhaps he is merely feeling Anakin's determination. His once Padawan shines like a brilliant sun, even now, even after having been so badly darkened. Their minds link as they work together, side by side, the way they always did in the past, the way they did when the Jedi fought them.

Obi-Wan felt it when Anakin gave himself over to the Light, and he can't deny how in awe of him he was in that moment. It was incredible, awe-inspiring, something that Anakin, and Anakin alone, could achieve. Being so in tune with the Light that one actually gives up one's conscious mind is not something that any Jedi he knows is capable of achieving, not even Master Yoda.

Sidious is Dark, a chaotic whirlwind, the center of a violent storm, and Obi-Wan reaches for the Light, letting it flow through him unchecked. Beside him, he feels Anakin doing likewise, as they give the fight their all, their blue – and Anakin's red – blades meeting Sidious' red ones. Sidious is a good duelist, no doubt about that, but as the fight wears on, as Obi-Wan falls back into Soresu, he realizes that dueling is not where Sidious' strengths lie.

Anakin, on the other hand, is so much stronger than Obi-Wan remembered, stronger than he ever saw, stronger than he even realized. He fights with a brutal efficiency, each move meant to kill. It's almost terrifying to see, but in the Force, Anakin remains Light, so Obi-Wan isn't afraid for him. They can do this. They can.

Sidious spins around his office, constantly moving and flipping, trying to use the Force to throw them around. They block a blast of lighting, and somehow, Anakin crosses his blade in front of him, using the Force to actually channel it back at the Sith Master. Sidious stumbles back a step, as the lightning crackles into his body, but he shakes it off, leaping towards Anakin again with a cry of rage as the door flies open and Red Guards come in, ready to defend the Chancellor. They know, of course, about his identity, or they must because they don't seem surprised to see him fighting this way.

Obi-Wan whirls towards them, lunging, cutting them down swiftly and without hesitation. This is a battle for the fate of the galaxy itself; they don't have the time to hesitate. When the four guards are dead, he uses the Force to close the door slashing the controls and locking it, before hurling random objects towards Sidious.

The Sith Master ducks aside, snarling, and Force shoving Anakin backwards. Anakin catches himself, stalking forwards with a dangerous, deadly air around him, and they fall in step, approaching Sidious once more. With a casual, off-handed flick of his wrist, Anakin crushes a transmitter on the Chancellor's desk, only a millisecond before he would have activated it, and somehow, Obi-Wan knows with certainty that its activation would have resulted in the issuing of Order 66. That would have been a nightmare. A living nightmare. His worst nightmare relived, because even if Anakin won't be involved, he would still witness the destruction of the Order.

Sidious is nearly backed to the wall when they attack him again, and his expression is wild, furious. He almost resembles a cornered, defeated wild animal, but not one that's been beaten. That was all Vader. Obi-Wan pushes that thought from mind. He cannot afford to be distracted. Sidious strikes towards them, viciously, wildly, and they methodically block him, covering their openings – and each other's – and pushing him back.

Now, Obi-Wan can understand why Master Yoda told him that he wasn't strong enough to face Sidious. He wouldn't have been. He wouldn't even have survived this long now, if not for Anakin. Anakin who is at the height of his strength, who may even grow stronger as the years go on. Anakin who truly, in this moment, resembles the Chosen One that the Jedi have long thought him to be.

Sidious' death comes swiftly.

One misstep on his part, and Anakin drives his blue lightsaber through the weakness, stabbing it deep into the Sith's side. Sidious stumbles, staggering, and Obi-Wan leaps forwards, batting aside the lightsaber aimed at him and slicing off the Sith Master's head. His body, the two pieces of it, rather, thump to the floor just as the door to the office crashes open and the Senate guards stream through, led by Windu.

Predictable.

"Anakin," Obi-Wan begins, instantly turning to cover the one person in the galaxy he would truly do anything for.

A Force wave blasts past him, shoving all the newcomers backwards, knocking some over, as Anakin lunges towards the window of the office, shattering the glass with the Force. "Come on," he calls, jumping out.

"Why do I even try?" Obi-Wan mutters under his breath, shaking his head fondly as he follows.

They're both insane for trying something this dangerous and reckless, especially given how long the fall is, but they'd both discussed it ahead of time. They both knew that it might end up being their only exit. They expected to be cornered, after all, and all things considered, it could have been much worse. They're both injured, through the burns and bruises are relatively minor, all things considered. Or more accurately, they've both dealt with worse.

Air rushes past Obi-Wan as he focuses his eyes on Anakin's falling figure before glancing down at the landing platform, which is far, faaaaar below. He doesn't let himself think about how long they're falling, before he slows his fall with the Force, running after Anakin as they leap into the speeder they brought here. Padme and Ahsoka are already waiting, and the second they're seated, Ahsoka flies them out of there.

"He's dead," Obi-Wan assures the two as soon as he can breathe again. He doesn't ask Padme or Ahsoka how it went; from the emotions of tentative relief that they're radiating into the Force, he already knows. It went well.

"We did it," Anakin agrees, flushed and breathless.

"We're not safe yet," Ahsoka reminds them, pushing their speeder even faster. They need to get out of here as fast as possible. Once they're off Coruscant and in hyperspace, they'll be safe.

Obi-Wan scans Anakin, reaching out to probe him with the Force to check his status. He's injured, but he'll be fine after getting patched up. The flight to Padme's apartment passes in silence, all of them too tense over their escape to properly focus, and once they arrive at 500 Republica, Anakin is scrambling to the cockpit to fire up the engines and fly them to safety.

None of them breathe a sigh of relief until they've made the jump to hyperspace, heading back to Tatooine. In some ways, Obi-Wan thinks that their escape was a little too easy, maybe purposefully so. That isn't surprising though, given that the Supreme Chancellor was just murdered. And, of course, the Jedi and Council will be unable to deny how indebted they are to them. The Republic and Order will endure, though they'll need to undergo changes if they are to endure for long.

That is not Obi-Wan's concern anymore.

Now, it's time for him to focus on healing. He's devoted his entire life to helping others, and he'll continue to do so when he can, but he wants to be selfish for a little while. He wants to spend time with Anakin, with their family. He wants to be able to recover and find himself again. He wants to relearn what it means to actually live.

And most of all, he wants to do that with Anakin at his side.

They killed Sidious together. They doomed themselves to years of being ostracized as traitors. They deserve to get a break. And perhaps now, they can focus on other things. They destroyed the Sith Master, but there will always be other evils which they can fight. They're free now, from the Republic, from the Jedi Order, from their other obligations and duties. They're free to live a little, to learn what it truly means to be a family.

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