This is the last chapter of this story. Thank you all so much for reading, I really appreciated all of the love this story got. I have seriously considered making a sequel, so stay tuned. I also have other works planned, and would love if you also check them out as well. Thank you again for following this story, and a special thank you to everyone who has been reading since 2018.

Anakin slowly opened his eyes. He blinked several times, trying to get his eyes to focus on the white ceiling of the halls of healing. He took a deep breath in and slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position. He sat there, and stared out the window, trying to keep his mind as empty as possible.

He couldn't think- no he wouldn't think about what he had seen. The things that he had done. The things that he was going to do. He looked down at his hands, one made of flesh, and the other made of metal. He had always liked his prosthetic arm- it made him unique amongst other knights and masters. Who else had lost their arm to a sith lord? He loved to tinker with it, trying to figure out ways to make it stronger, better than a human arm. But now, now he wanted to rip it off his body, and never see it again. Anything to stop him from becoming the cyborg that haunted his dreams.

Anakin thought about his presence, the way the shadows seems to bend to the sith lord's will, and he remembered.

That this wasn't the first time he had seen him.

Anakin recalled the imposing silhouette, not on mustufar, but on his home world. He remembered being scared by the shadow and running away. Only to wake up and find that it was a nightmare, and that he was safe with his mother. The monster wasn't real.

Although, he wasn't so sure of that anymore. Anakin curled his right hand into a fist and inspected his handiwork. The improvements that he had been so proud of. He closed his eyes, the scenes playing out again in his mind.

He opened his eyes.

Why did the chancellor keep showing up in his visions? Anakin frowned. Yes, the chancellor was someone who had a lot of influence over his life, and someone who he trusted dearly. But the chancellor was not force sensitive, and never mind a sith lord of some kind.

Then why did he keep showing up? Was there something that he was missing? Anakin though back to what he had seen.

"Lord Vader." The voice from earlier said. Anakin's face scrunched up in concentration, trying to figure out who's voice that was.

"It seems as though in your anger, you killed her." The voice said again. That accent… the tone.

That was the chancellor speaking. Why was he saying, 'Lord Vader?' How did he know about the sith?

Anakin opened his eyes in shock and gasped. He heard the machines begin to beep as his heart rate and blood pressure began to increase.

No… that's not possible. It couldn't be him. But the more Anakin thought about how the chancellor kept showing up in his visions, the more sense it made. The red sabers, the constant presence.

Chancellor Palpatine is the sith lord we were looking for. He whispered. His hands feel to his sides and he gripped his bedsheets, trying to steady his breathing. He couldn't tell anyone- and who would believe him anyway? How would be able to explain himself to the council? To Padme? What would he say?

The door opened, and in walked Obi-Wan.

"Anakin, are you alright?" He asked, noticing his friends current state.

Anakin took a deep breath in before responding "Yeah, I'm ok." He whispered. Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying it.

"We need to talk." Obi-Wan said while looking away. "May I sit down?" Anakin nodded and watched ad Obi-Wan sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Anakin… I" Obi-Wan trailed off. "I'm sorry." He said softly. Anakin blinked in surprise. Why was his master sorry? He was the perfect jedi, always trying to help others, and being sure to follow the code as well as he could.

"What?" Anakin said, not really understanding what was going on. Obi-Wan looked at him, concern in his eyes.

"The… incident. Where I went undercover." Oh, right. Anakin thought. That mission. He was honestly surprised to find that… well, that he had forgotten about it. With everything else that had happened in the past month and figuring out that the war they had been fighting for was all a big lie this morning, he was occupied with other things.

"Right, that." Anakin said, his voice empty. Truthfully, he wasn't even mad at this point. If that was the worst thing his master was going to do for the sake of war, well, then Anakin certainly had him beat. Literally. He looked back at his master's face, and saw the confusion, the concern. He wanted to say something, reach out and tell him that it was all fine, but it wasn't. How could he face the man who had trained him and cared for him, knowing that he would kill him and everything they hold dear? The anger he had felt before being captured was gone, but there was nothing in its place. He just felt hollow.

"Anakin," Obi-Wan sighed. "I know that you may not have agreed with my actions, but I want you to know that I was trying to act in the best interest of the jedi, of the republic." He said quickly, trying to prove his point.

"I know." Anakin responded. Obi-Wan opened his mouth and then closed it again.

"But that's not all." Obi-Wan said. "Maul capturing you…." He paused and took a deep breath. "That was my fault."

"No, it wasn't. Don't blame yourself." Anakin said and closed his eyes. He couldn't look at him. Not now. Not like this.

"It was. Anakin look at me." Anakin slowly opened his eyes. "Maul wanted you because he wanted revenge. He was using you to get his revenge, for what I had done to him. And he was almost successful."

"Well, I'm still here." Anakin said while trying to give him the same smirk he always gave. But this time, it was empty.

"It was close, Anakin. Too close." Obi-Wan said and looked away. "I had no idea… what I was going to tell Ahsoka."

Ahsoka.

"Where is she?" Anakin asked, trying to change the subject.

"She's around. Would you like to see her?" Anakin nodded.

"Ahsoka, come meet me in the halls of healing." Obi-Wan said into his commlink. He looked back at Anakin.

"Someone wants to see you."

Anakin watched as his master got up to leave and go get Ahsoka. When the door slid shut, Anakin allowed himself to lose his composure and felt a tear slide down his cheek.

He wouldn't let himself become a sith.

He couldn't. He'd rather die. He would rather have Obi-Wan throw him into the lava and kill him than come back as that thing.

As Vader.

He knew what needed to be done.

The door opened back up, and Ahsoka walked into the room, her smile fading slightly as she looked at her master. While she didn't know that much about how humans looked, she had never seen him look so sickly, so frail before. His skin was almost as white as the sheets, and there were dark circles around his eyes. His face was thinner, more hollow. But his eyes were still just as sharp as ever. If anything, she could see something else in his eyes. But she wasn't sure what it was.

"How are you feeling, master?" Ahsoka asked.

Anakin shrugged. "Better, I guess. I still don't remember much, but from how everyone keeps acting, I guess I'm doing better."

"Well, to be fair, your heart did stop beating at one point." Ahsoka muttered.

"What!" Anakin exclaimed. "You never mentioned anything about that!" He said while looking at Obi-Wan.

"I wasn't sure what to say." He said softly. "I never want to see anything like that happen ever again."

"You won't. I promise." Anakin replied.

"How can you be so sure of that, Anakin? We are in a war, jedi are dying every day." Obi-Wan responded.

"We won't be at war forever. We just have to make sure we have each other's backs." Anakin said. He thought about his visons, and how he became Vader. In the end, he was alone there, but he won't be here.

"Skyguy's right." Ahsoka said while placing her hands on her hips. "We've been able to get out of every situation the war has thrown us into."

"It's like what you said on Mortis, Master." Anakin said with a small smile. "We'll be alright as long as we stick together."

Obi-Wan slowly stroked his beard. "I did say that, didn't I" he said with a small smile.

Anakin smiled as well. Ahsoka's face lit up. She couldn't remember the last time she had seen her master smile, never mind him and Master Kenobi at the same time.

They were going to be alright, as long as they stuck together.