a/n: Hello to anyone who's trying to read this! I'm pretty new to all of it, so just really giving it a shot and hoping for the best atm. Probably will try and update at least once a week. That's all really, the rest is as description says.
Anakin stopped dead, breath caught as he processed the unbelievable words he had just heard from his friend and mentor, Chancellor Palpatine.
"It's you. You're the Sith lord." It wasn't his usual outburst, though the anger was there. The anger, and the hurt, but also the love he still held for a man he considered a dear friend, but turmoil above all else ... what to do next? Between his life as a Jedi and his true love ... if he had to choose, which way could he possibly go?
Often there are no clear answers, and the pure chance of one-split second reaction can completely determine the outcome. Anakin was, for the first time in a long time, well and truly lost. Nothing had been like this, and he knew afterwards nothing would be the same again. He did not know what to choose, or even how to choose it, but his human and Jedi sides were in agreement on one thing: this could not stand.
He raised his ignited lightsaber, pointing it directly into the face of his friend, the Dark Lord of the Sith and Chancellor of the Republic, Sheev Palpatine. The two began circling one another.
Unbidden, a series of memories began running through his mind. Beginnings and endings. Meeting Obi-Wan, meeting the Chancellor ... meeting Padmé. His frustration with the Jedi Council, his love for his mother, his pride at being a Jedi, fighting for the Republic and the hope it represented. His raw, vicious, righteous anger when his mother died ... the heady feeling of power, the power to serve justice when and how he saw fit. All of it, and more ran through his mind while he was circling, while the Chancellor was pleading with him, pleading to let him help save Padmé's life, and cursing him for a tool of the Jedi. Another memory ... Count Dooku. An execution he had no right to carry out. Arguing with the Chancellor about whether to kill a defenceless man, an argument a true Jedi could not fathom. The feeling of wrongness, and trying to convince himself it was rightness ... and he knew.
He knew that really at that moment there was no choice. Maybe one would come later, but for now it was clear that this man was a threat to what he, the Jedi, and the clones had been fighting and risking their lives for for years; the Republic itself.
The Chancellor saw the tension leaving the boy, and felt the malevolent storm shift to the calm sea. In a final attempt to goad him, he offered a challenge,
"Don't you wan't to kill me?"
And, just for a moment, he hesitated.
"The truth is I would like to, but it wouldn't be right."
Just as it wasn't right the way Dooku died. He can't go back and change that, but this one will play out differently.
"I'm turning you in. The Council and I have had our disagreements, but they would never have done what you have."
Not to the Republic, and not to me.
"Are you certain? They have denied you, ignored you, overlooked the Chosen One himself. They would not let you become a Jedi Master, as I'm sure you remember. And yet you're convinced of their good intentions for the Republic? And what about Padmé, Anakin? You know they will not stand to see you as both the most powerful Jedi and one who would defy them. They will come for you ... or for her. Only by allying with me can you be sure she will be safe."
It was truly amazing, Anakin reflected, how this man could spin any, literally anything. Even knowing everything he found it hard to back away, to turn and leave open the possibility of a danger to Padmé. But he knew what Obi-Wan, the standard that all Jedi should look up to, would do.
"This conversation is at an end."
And with that, he left.
-Landing at the Jedi Temple-
He saw them moving towards the another ship, just as he was landing. No, they don't know what's ahead, I have to stop them! Something of his intent must have made its way through the Force, because Master Windu stopped just before boarding the transport. Anakin rushed forward, but before he could say anything:
"What is it, young Skywalker? We are just off to see the Chancellor, to ask him to revoke his emergency powers." The tone made it clear it wasn't really going to be a question.
"That's just it, Master. He won't do it. He's a Sith lord ... the one we've been looking for."
"You sound confident."
"I am, Master. He's just told me knows the ways of the Dark side of the Force. And Master Yoda has said there are always two Sith - a Master and an apprentice. So he must be the Master."
"We have been well and truly blind. Thank you for bringing this to me, Skywalker. Although I was hoping the end of the war might herald a transition to peace and stability, it appears there is much yet to be done."
"I'm coming with you. You'll need my help if you want to arrest him."
"Anakin." That stopped him. Master Windu almost never referred to him by his first name.
"We on the Council have known for some time that you have looked up to the Chancellor, and confided in him. You will remain here, and although I do not doubt your word, we shall have to investigate this ourselves. You know there are rumours about the Jedi plotting to take over the Republic, I assume. For a charge of high treason, we shall need more solid evidence ... even more than sworn testimony of a hero of the Clone Wars.
"I understand, Master."
But he didn't. Wasn't he the one who brought this to them, so that they knew they were not going to face some old man but a true Dark Lord of the Sith? More importantly, wasn't he the Chosen One, destined to bring balance to the Force?
"Wait for us in the Council chamber, Skywalker. If what you've told me is true, we shall meet you back here, shortly."
And so they left, and Anakin knew he shouldn't go after them. He knew he was under orders, and those orders were for a good reason, and that Obi-Wan would be disappointed that he was even thinking of going after them. But he could not shake the feeling that something was about to go very wrong.
Unfortunately as he was under official orders to remain, he wouldn't be able to use military transport the way the other Jedi had; he'd have to stick to a slower, personal speeder. Not great, but it would have to do.
-In the transport-
Mace Windu stood with Masters Kolar, Fisto and Tiin, and let his mind enter a semi-meditative state, both to understand how it was possible they could have reached this point, and to begin preparing himself mentally for a duel. Vaapad was a duelling style that could be dangerous to those who couldn't control it, as Mace well knew; it took people too close to the Dark side. He didn't teach it often.
Landing at the Chancellor's office, they entered only to find the man himself, looking as kindly and wise as when they'd last seen him.
"Ah, Master Windu. Is the war over then? Has General Grievous finally been destroyed?"
"He has, but that is no longer relevant. You are under arrest, Chancellor."
"And just who are you, to arrest me? I am the leader of the Republic!"
A harsher inflection now, he knows he's done, thought Mace.
As he and the other Jedi ignited their weapons, he stated, calmly as he could "We act under the authority of the Senate. The authority you gave us, Chancellor."
"I do. And just as I gave it to you, so I can take it AWAY!"
With that, he summoned a lightsaber into his grasp, and attacked. A vicious, but short battle. The Chancellor was clearly a master duellist in addition to being a powerful Force-wielder, on the level of the highest Jedi and Sith of history. Masters Tiin and Kolar, excellent duellists in their own right, were cut down like they did not even know how to hold their sabers. Master Fisto persisted a little longer, but all too soon Mace found himself alone against the greatest threat the Republic had ever faced. All alone, and yet, he could not fail.
What many people, and even many Jedi did not know, was that Mace Windu possessed a rare ability. Shatterpoint. The ability to tell through the Force when a specific moment in time would alter the course of events for the entire galaxy on a fundamental level, in a myriad of ways. A moment where paths diverged, and one would not cross the other again. And this was such a moment. His death was the death of the Republic, he could feel it. And so he fought, for everything he and everyone he knew had sacrificed, and managed to knock the Chancellor's lightsaber from his hand hand. The break in the duel gave him a second to leave the intense focus of Vaapad, and gauge the situation. They had ... walked ... down the hall, to the other end. The window to his left was broken, and they were both on the ledge. And he could feel, through the Force, a presence he had genuinely hoped would stay in the Council chambers as ordered. Skywalk-
FLASH
React! And he brings the lightsaber up. Lightning. Destructive, chaotic, but with a distinct allure. The perfect power to represent the Dark side. But it cannot touch him, he is truth and justice, law and order. The Jedi and the Republic. And he, they, will. Not. Lose. He uses the Force to reflect the lightning back at the Dark Lord, who collapses. He has nearly won, victory is all but assured.
In his mind, Mace relaxes a little. It is done, the Republic is safe, and he is relieved.
But the Chancellor smiles, and Mace Windu realises that nothing is certain yet, as he feels Anakin run into the room, bringing the shatterpoint sense to the fore.
"NO!"
—Anakin/Mace POV-
This would not be the first time he's disobeyed a direct order, and so far he'd usually been glad to do things his way. But the trepidation he felt building here was new, after all, risking your life is practically the Jedi job description. Or has been, anyway, during the war. Choosing one self above the other, however, was something else entirely.
He could feel the battle drawing to a close as he was landing, Master Windu's power and stability shining through the Force, and the Chancellor's in turn withering out. He can see Master Windu's intent, to end the life of the Chancellor, the one man who can help save Padmé, and he charges into the room.
A scene that he knew he would never forget. Outside him, one man standing tall over the other, holding the unique purple lightsaber that so many had come to fear and respect. Inside him, still, the choice. The inevitable choice.
"NO!"
"You see Anakin, he's trying to kill me, they want to take over the Republic."
The Chancellor still somehow manages to sound pathetic, in need of help. And Anakin wants to help him. For himself. For Padmé. For all the memories he has of his only real father figure. It might have been Qui-Gon, if he hadn't died when Anakin was so young.
"Don't listen to him Anakin. The Sith trade in lies, and you already know he's deceived you."
Master Windu had a point. But ...
"I need him alive."
"We both know he's far too dangerous to be kept alive. He controls everything, the entire machinery of the Republic. We have no evidence. If we let him go now, there will be no justice. He must die."
"He must stand trial! We cannot simply dispense justice however and whenever we wish."
A stunningly bad time for Skywalker to have picked up on the finer points of Jedi philosophy, Mace reflected.
"As a Jedi, you must trust the Force. This man represents the Dark side in its entirety, and here, now, we must put an end to it all. Restore balance."
"Don't forget, Anakin, I am the only one with the power to save the one you love."
Mace sensed it. The shatterpoint moment was here. Whatever happened next was the roll of the die that decided the fate of the galaxy. He advanced towards the Chancellor, not dropping his guard.
Often there are no clear answers, and the pure chance of one-split second reaction can completely determine the outcome.
And for some reason, it came back to his mind. Count Dooku. A defenceless man he struck down. He could not allow Master Windu to do the same. And as the memory came to mind, so did the solution. A temporary one, at least. He Force-jumped towards the two, igniting his lightsaber as he did so.
Just as he started to bring the saber down, he turned towards the Chancellor, chopping both his hands off.
"Chancellor Palpatine. You are under arrest."
"You fool! What are you doing? She will die, for your arrogance. Just like your mother."
But Anakin was at peace. The Force would show him the way. He knew now the Jedi forbid attachment for this exact reason, they were too compassionate, too caring, to allow the suffering of someone close. Whatever happened next, his marriage to Padmé would be exposed. Between Anakin, the Jedi Knight and Anakin, the husband of Padmé Amidala, he had made his choice. But the Chancellor would be brought down, and changes would be made. To the Republic, to the Jedi. So that this wouldn't happen again. But that was for later.
Mace Windu had a sudden flash of a vision, a timeline where his arm was the one severed, his death following soon after, and the subsequent fall of the Republic and rise of the Galactic Empire. Well. That could have gone worse.
They cuffed the still fuming Chancellor at the elbows, and boarded the transport, heading to the Senate. Rather than permit him to continue talking about the death of Padmé, however, Anakin had chosen to gag him for the moment, though naturally he would be free to speak at his trial.
"Today you have gained my respect, and more importantly, my trust. Thank you, Master Skywalker."
And Anakin nearly laughed at that.
"Thank you, Master Windu, but I cannot be a Jedi. I am married to Padmé Amidala, the Senator from Naboo."
A summary of what follows:
They take the Chancellor back to the Senate, bring him to trial, and win. The corrupt elements of the Senate cannot refute the evidence of three dead bodies and video surveillance footage showing them being cut down mercilessly. Anakin reveals he is married while testifying, and declares that he is leaving the Jedi. Obi-Wan Kenobi knows he cannot dissuade him, and further knows that he should not - the Chosen One has brought balance to the Force, and should now be allowed to live his own life as he sees fit. The Jedi have a lot of work to do - the Clone Wars are over, so negotiations must take place regarding the establishment of peace throughout the galaxy, reopening trade routes, etc. They also have a lot of rethinking to do, about how this entire series of events came about, and many leave to look for guidance in the Force from elsewhere. More or less a happily ever after.