"You are under arrest My Lord," the imposing figure of Mace Windu said as he held his violet blade precariously close to Palpatine's neck. If the Chancellor moved even an inch, he would be killed by accident. An outcome which Anakin Skywalker wished to avoid at all costs. He still needed the information that had been promised to him a mere hour ago. His heart and mind clamoured for it, the desire to save Padmé from the death that had been foretold in his visions. He would not allow her to suffer the same fate as his mother had.
Sensing his approach, The Jedi Master indicated for Anakin to stay back with a wave of his hand. A typical approach for Master Windu, who had always been arrogant when it came to his own power. A fact which had cost the lives of three of the Order's most skilled Jedi Masters. Anakin hoped that their deaths would spur Mace into discovering his own arrogance.
"Anakin," the warm, familiar voice of Sheev Palpatine said weakly as he lay sprawled out on the ledge. "I told you it would come to this!" Palpatine protested as he attempted to push himself away from Mace's Lightsaber blade. He could not, however. He was backed into a corner, defenceless and completely at the mercy of the Jedi Master before him. "I was right!" Palpatine protested, "the Jedi are taking over!" No! Anakin thought to himself, the Jedi where not taking over. It wasn't in the nature of the Order to crave the kind of power that the Chancellor held, save for only in the most dire of circumstances. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he looked from Mace to Palpatine. He knew he was walking on a razor's edge. One simple slip-up on his part could have long-lasting repercussions.
"The oppression of the Sith will never return," Mace scowled fiercely as Anakin pondered the situation. The Chancellor was indeed a Sith Lord. There was no denying that, especially when confronted by the slain forms of the three Jedi Masters. Not to mention Mace Windu's tired and battered form. Anakin had never seen the Jedi Master so worn out, not even during the First Battle of Geonosis. And that was a testament to Palpatine's power in the Dark Side. "You have lost," Mace snarled as Anakin edged closer.
Despite the danger that Palpatine still posed, Anakin still wanted Palpatine kept alive. It was not the Jedi way to simply kill an unarmed man unless there was no other option. And between the two of them, Anakin felt that they could properly arrest Palpatine for his crimes. Maybe even work out a deal with him for the benefit of all.
"No," Palpatine growled, losing his usual warm tone and replacing it with something sinister. To Anakin, it sounded like the same voice that had come out of The Son on the Planet Mortis. It was that of a savage animal, completely unlike the kind figure that he had known Palpatine to be. "No!" Palpatine roared, even louder this time, "you will die!" he screamed as a torrent of blue lightning stretched out from his fingertips and lunged out at Mace Windu. The Jedi Master was only barely able to raise his blade in time to block the lightning. And even then, the blade only barely held the lightning back. Tongues of energy lapped at the fringes of Mace's body as Anakin realized he needed to act fast.
With inhuman speed, the young Jedi launched himself between Mace and the Lightning, all the while igniting his own crystal blue lightsaber to deflect the attack. He was in much better shape than the older Master, and was thus able to hold off Palpatine's assault better for the few seconds it lasted.
"This is not the Jedi way," he said to the exhausted Mace, as soon as the lightning ceased.
"Anakin!" Palpatine pleaded desperately as he seemed to whither on the spot, "Anakin, don't continue to be their pawn! See through their lies like a great leader should!"
"A great leader?" Mace snarled, "you plunged the Galaxy into the most destructive conflict in over a thousand generations!"
"Anakin," Palpatine cried, "whatever I have done, it was for the benefit of the Galaxy! Surely you must now see this! Without me, where would we be?" he said in agony as Anakin stopped to think. Where would they be without Palpatine? He had been there from the beginning, before Naboo. He had to have been the one who manipulated the Trade Federation into blockading Naboo. All for the chance to be elected Supreme Chancellor. And then, later, he had recruited Count Dooku to rally the Separatist movement, and spread fear throughout the Republic. That's who Palpatine was, a master manipulator who used his puppets to do his bidding. All the while he sat safely in the shadows.
"You're under arrest," Anakin glowered as he reached behind his back to a pair of standard-issue restraining cuffs.
"Stupid boy."
In an instant, Anakin felt himself being hurled across the room by massive tendrils of Lightning that had once more sprouted from the Chancellor's fingertips. He landed hard against the wall of the Chancellor's office, with his blade still in front of him. No doubt it had absorbed a great deal of the Lightning, saving his life. Behind him, Mace Windu was in much worse shape, as he had been even more unprepared for the attack. He would need medical attention for his wounds.
Putting the wounded Jedi Master out of his mind, Anakin rose to his feet, careful to keep his blade between himself and Palpatine.
"Years of planning," Palpatine snarled, his apparent weakness completely gone as he stood at his full height. As he spoke the room seemed to grow ever darker. "Scheming. Manipulating. Waiting. All for this moment," Palpatine continued as he stepped forward, "and you could not do the one thing I required of you, Anakin."
"You're a traitor to the Republic!" Anakin shot back defiantly as he assumed a defensive stance. He could feel the rage welling up inside of him at this betrayal. It gnawed at his soul, yearning to be set free. And he would have set it free, if he did not feel a soothing presence wash over him.
"Anakin," A familiar, yet alien voice from his past said softly into his ear. "You cannot win this battle. You must run."
"You will pay the price for your lack of vision!" Palpatine roared as he shot more lightning from his hands. But this time Anakin was more prepared. Instead of blocking the devastating attack, he shunted to the side, out of it's path. "I should have foreseen this," Palpatine growled menacingly as he curled his fingers inward into tight fists. Taking the initiative, Anakin thrust outwards with the Force, blasting Palpatine back off his feet. He then used this opportunity to dash towards the shattered window, grabbing Master Windu as he ran.
With his Lightsaber still in hand, he managed to turn at the last moment to block another lightning attack, which pushed him perilously close to the edge.
"This isn't over," Anakin heaved as he teetered on the edge. "The Jedi will stop you, no matter what!"
"Everything and everyone you hold dear shall be burned to the ground," Palpatine sneered back, "and rest assured, young Skywalker, I shall personally make sure those closest to you suffer the most!" with that, Palpatine shot out another torrent of Force Lightning, which knocked Anakin and the semi-conscious Windu off the ledge.
The two of them soon entered a complete free-fall in the open air. Luckily the Chancellor's office was high up on the Senate Building, so there was plenty of time for Anakin to see the ground rushing up to meet them. But fortunately there was a speeder in the way. All Anakin had to do was reach out to it with the Force, and pull it towards him.
The two Jedi landed with a hard crash, rolling on the deck of the speeder, which was transporting off-world tourists around the City-Planet. And many of the offworlder's where obviously shocked and surprised to see two Jedi land on their vehicle.
"Jedi Business," he said with a huff, pushing their worries out of their minds with the Force. "Take us down!" he said to the pilot, who nodded appropriately as he veered the craft downwards to the nearest landing platform.
The second they landed, Anakin spotted two Police Speeders heading their way. For a moment, he was gladdened, thinking that they could help them. But then he realized that the police forces would back Palpatine up at first, until it was too late to stop him. They had to run.
"This way," Mace Windu snapped as he ran as fast as his injured body could carry him towards a deep alley, one of many that ran through the City-planet. "Hurry," he heaved as the two speeders came to a stop, and their officers disembarked with their blasters drawn. At least they weren't clone troopers just yet. The two Jedi ran for some time, outstripping the officers with ease as they wove their way through street after street. But as they ran, Anakin noticed a message being broadcast on every screen, warning the public that the Jedi Order was a traitor to the Republic. Soon enough, there where Clone troopers out on patrols, scouring the recesses of the city. They would be problematic if it came to a fight.
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Sheev Palpatine felt the anger coursing through his veins as he strut along a hidden pathway inside the Senate building. It had originally been installed for a previous Supreme Chancellor to smuggle mistresses in and out of the Senate Building. And now it served him whenever he needed to quickly get away from the public eye to deal with more pressing concerns. Such as the abrupt change in Anakin Skywalker's heart. He had been so sure that Anakin was ripe for the turning that he'd played his hand, and it had backfired on him horribly. Not only was he without an Apprentice, but both Skywalker and Windu had escaped alive, and either one was powerful enough to prove a threat to his rein. Not to mention that the Separatist Movement was still a looming threat that he now only had a modicum of control over. He could only hope that General Grievous would successfully escape Kenobi's clutches, if he couldn't kill the pesky Jedi General himself.
But Palpatine knew he couldn't leave that to chance, so he pulled out his personal comlink and keyed in a specific code which connected him directly to the Republic's Galaxy-wide network. In no time the image of a clone commander appeared before him.
"Commander Cody," he said with a sneer to his unwitting puppet, "execute order sixty-six."
"It will be done, my Lord," Cody replied with a monotone voice, before clicking off. Sheev smiled, knowing that in mere moments Obi-wan Kenobi would be surrounded on all sides by enemies and killed. But he still had work to do, even as he kept moving through the corridor. He keyed in another code, which brought up another clone trooper, this one safe on Coruscant.
"Commander Fox," he said, "The Jedi are traitors to the Republic. Gather your soldiers and march on the temple. Leave no survivors," he commanded as a second thought came to him. He realized where Anakin might go next, and added, "but send ten of your finest men to apprehend Senator Amidala. She is to be considered a co-conspirator with the Jedi. And contact Admiral Tarkin, I want him to oversee our ships in orbit, to prevent any Jedi from escaping the planet."
"Yes sir," the ever-vigilant Clone replied with a curt bow. Palpatine smiled as he felt his plans being set into motion, he could feel the countless deaths on the horizon, and they made him feel good. He contacted clone after clone, giving each the same set of orders to kill their Jedi Generals on sight. By the time he reached his hidden ship, there was only one Clone legion left to contact, one which he had been savouring for some time.
"Captain Rex, the time has come. Execute Order sixty-six," he said, knowing full well that the Captain was fighting on Mandalore alongside Skywalker's disgraced former Apprentice. Her death, alongside those of Kenobi's and Amidala's, would push him over the edge completely.
He smiled inside as he felt ripples flow through the force. He could feel the hundreds of Jedi deaths happening all across the galaxy. It was a moment he had hoped to share with his new apprentice. But fate had intervened, it seemed. He had felt a presence unlike any he had felt before in his office. It was like an echo of a soul. He knew he would have to delve into ancient texts for more information, so he could know how to combat it in the future.
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The two beaten, battered and exhausted Jedi sprinted through the underbelly of Coruscant. Which was probably the absolute worst place for them to be at the moment, as it was crawling with Republic Security Forces and Clone Troopers. All of whom where hunting them down. Several times they'd been spotted and been forced to quickly fight their way free.
And every delay made Anakin more and more nervous. He knew that Palpatine would target Padme to get back at Anakin for his 'betrayal'. And he would make her suffer for it. But they couldn't get to her, her Apartment was to far for them to simply make it on foot, even if they didn't have to hide constantly.
"Over there!" the distinct voice of a Clone Soldier shouted, as he pointed to where Anakin and Mace where running from cover. The Force granted them speed beyond what any normal being could hope to achieve. But they where not faster than the blaster fire that peppered the air around them. In an instant, they had their Lightsabers out, deflecting blaster shots with skill and precision back at their enemies. It took far too long for them to fell the Clones, and they knew reinforcements would be on the way.
"Jedi!" a rough voice coughed from behind them. Both Anakin and Mace turned quickly on the spot, ready for another fight. But there was no one to attack them. Only the large, burly Besalisk diner owner Dexter Jettster, a friend of Obi-Wan's. "O'er here!" he whispered as he waved them over from the back door to his Diner. Anakin was not one to let a golden opportunity to go to waste. He and Mace quickly ducked under the burly cook's frame and into the dingy Diner.
For the first time in hours, Anakin was able to relax his arms as he leaned heavily against the wall. Mace was not nearly so fortunate. His injuries where far more severe than Anakin's, and he had been fighting much harder and much longer than he had. He crashed against a table, and fell onto the floor.
"Droid!" Dex barked loudly, "fetch me the med kit!"
"No," Anakin protested, "we can't be-."
"I know, Skywalker," Dex muttered with a wave of a meaty arm, "I've seen the holo's. I don't believe it. Not for a second." Anakin nodded approvingly. Although Dex's food was questionable at times, there was no denying his character. He'd always been a loyal friend to Obi-Wan for as long as Anakin could remember. "The kriffin' Senate's is whats a traitor, if you ask me. Biggest bunch a' scumbags I've ever seen, the lot of 'em," he said as an Astromech droid rolled into the room, carrying a decrepit-looking medical kit. "'Least most of em, anyways," he added as he opened the kit and began applying it's contents to the semi-conscious Mace's many wounds while Anakin remained on the lookout for any signs of trouble. He could still hear a commotion outside as several police speeders sped past, and his heart skipped a few beats. He knew that any moment Palpatine would be sending Troops to arrest Padme, if he hadn't already, so he could use her as leverage against him. And while he knew his wife was a strong woman and fully capable of handling herself, she and their unborn child would be in great danger. He had to get a message to her, and fast. Luckily he had an idea come to him.
"Dex," Anakin said, "I need you to send out one of your delivery droids with a message for me."