A/N - It feels so good to be back in some sort of routine with writing now :) This story is rapidly hurtling towards the finish line and I'm very excited to get started on the sequel! Anyways for now here is the next instalment :) Thanks to everyone still following this the support is much appreciated! Enjoy
It took a few moments for Anakin to realise he was falling backwards, the gravity shift sent his head spinning as he tumbled off of the medical table. The ground proceeded to rush upwards to meet his flailing body as he cried out in surprise, shock, mortification. The actual fall happened in slow motion as a million thoughts rocketed through his exhausted addled mind.
How can Qui-Gon be here?
He's dead though…
How can I hear that voice?
That voice which holds so many memories…
It's finally happened…
I've gone insane…
As the final deduction became a fully-fledged thought process Anakin Skywalker's body hit the ground with an almighty crash, the one thought surviving throughout was the fact he had clearly gone absolutely positively insane. Various medical equipment smashed around him as time inevitably sped up, all of the victims of his stunned fall joining him also on the cold floor.
"Anakin!" The voice shouted again, all but confirming the Padawan's lunacy.
Fearfully he looked up at the shape of Qui-Gon who had moved around to accommodate Anakin's new position. Anakin couldn't help but stare even though his brain screamed out at the ridiculousness of the entire image, cried out for rest in a desperate attempt to fight off the madness. Qui-Gon, the figure, the ghost knelt down in front of Anakin with a pitied look in his eyes. A kind look that Anakin recognised immediately, this was just how he remembered the Jedi Master. Seeing that look again after all these years brought a lump to the Padawan's throat, he couldn't help the pained feelings unleash even though this was not, could not be real.
"What are you?" Anakin squeaked quietly, his attempts to keep the overwhelming fear out of his voice failing miserably.
As he stared more at the intruder he realised why his brain had churned out the word ghost, the figure was neither here or not here in reality. His form wasn't solid, instead it was almost as if Anakin were staring at a hologram of sorts. He gulped down the rising panic in his chest, realising for the first time that there was no warning blaring at him from the force. Whatever this thing was the force deemed that it held no threat to Anakin, for now anyway.
His instincts eventually kicked in and Anakin scrambled up from the floor as well as putting some distance between himself and the newcomer, intent on finding any defence he could with the lack of weapon. The figure only smiled over the action, which of course proceeded to leave Anakin even more confused. He was surprised nobody had heard the commotion but alas he could not feel anybody nearby, the droid had even seemed to stop working. Anakin was alone with the ghost.
"You know who I am, Anakin."
Anakin almost closed his eyes as the voice struck several chords, he had longed to hear this man speak again, to be alive again. Qui-Gon Jinn had been struck down cruelly before Anakin had even been given the chance to get to know the Jedi Master properly, it was this man who was responsible for Anakin being free today. Of course the recent conversations with his Master had Anakin on the defensive, Qui-Gon had hurt Obi-Wan. Anakin had been blind to it at the time but now with his own Master under so much strain from Dooku all of the insecurities from the past had resurfaced, Qui-Gon's abandonment of him was one of them.
The perfect picture that Anakin had painted of the man had shattered slightly, he had flaws just like everyone else Anakin had just been blind to them at the time. He had ignorantly missed the betrayal towards Obi-Wan, who of course now he had grown even closer to than he had with Qui-Gon.
"How do I know you're him?" Anakin's tone was rather cold, he hadn't purposefully made it that way but mused it was probably down to the new information he had learned from Obi-Wan.
Qui-Gon looked hurt for a full second before the usual serene features were back, alongside a look of understanding. It seemed he knew why the welcome from Anakin was wary at best. From Anakin's point of view, Obi-Wan's struggle with the dark side stemmed from Qui-Gon's misguided actions.
"What does the force tell you, Anakin?"
Anakin furrowed his brows at Qui-Gon, still not allowing himself to believe fully that this could be possible. He didn't want to build himself up for disappointment, even though Qui-Gon had a lot to answer for he was still the first person in a long time to show him kindness, he had shown his mother kindness.
Qui-Gon smiled as if he could hear Anakin's internal battle, perhaps he could these were unchartered waters for Anakin. He decided to do as the man suggested and delved into the reliable currents of the force. What he discovered shocked him, the force was telling him the truth. Even though the truth was literally being screamed into his face Anakin found it hard to swallow, this man was indeed Qui-Gon or he had the presence of Qui-Gon at least. How was that possible?
"I wish I had time to explain everything, Anakin, but you know as well as I do time is running out," Qui-Gon implored gravely, worry sparking behind his eyes.
"Obi-Wan…" Anakin deduced, had his Master seen Qui-Gon? Was that why he had been acting so strangely?
"I have been communicating with Obi-Wan for a few days," Qui-Gon confirmed as he read Anakin's surfacing questions.
"How haven't I seen you before?" Anakin struggled to find his voice as the shock finally caught up with his scrambled brain, he wasn't insane. Qui-Gon was really here and he was really speaking to him.
"I've only been able to connect with Obi-Wan when he's been unconscious." Qui-Gon chuckled as if remembering a memory before sobering again. "He needs your help, Anakin."
Anakin couldn't believe his ears what could he do? Why wasn't Qui-Gon speaking to a real Jedi?
"I'm just a Padawan what can I do?" Anakin felt embarrassed even speaking the question, he had never felt more mortified speaking to Qui-Gon before.
Qui-Gon beamed down at Anakin, closing the gap between them as he did so. "Anakin, you are not just a Padawan, you are the chosen one." Anakin huffed at the nickname, evidently not feeling all that special now when Obi-Wan was in so much danger alone. "You may not believe it, young one, but I do, Obi-Wan does."
Anakin's head shot up at that, he of course always knew that Qui-Gon believed in the prophecy but his Master? Obi-Wan had always had doubts when Anakin first arrived at the temple, he never knew his Master believed in such things.
"He does?"
Qui-Gon nodded. "Yes he's seen the potential you have Anakin. It is your destiny to help destroy the Sith, it always has been."
Anakin sat himself back on the medical table, rubbing his newly bruised elbow as he lost himself in thought. What Qui-Gon was saying sounded nutty on the surface but as Anakin thought more about it strangely the words started to ring true, the force chimed it's approval also. That didn't answer the question of how he was going to help though, or even where Obi-Wan was.
"The Council don't believe in him, they think he's fallen to the dark side," Anakin muttered dejectedly, head shooting up to plead with Qui-Gon. "You have to believe in him though right? He's not dark, I know it."
"No he's not."
With just those three little words Anakin felt a great weight lift of his chest, he hadn't realised how much he needed to hear the confirmation from someone other than himself. It didn't stop the fact the Council wouldn't believe him, force if he started chattering about Qui-Gon they would definitely strike him off as a mad-man. If the Council went in thinking Obi-Wan was dark… Anakin had seen the steely resolve in Mace's eyes, even the sad acceptance in Yoda's. They were prepared to end Obi-Wan's life if it came to it, Anakin would have to make sure it didn't.
"Anakin, it doesn't matter what the Council believe right now, all of the repercussions for disobedience can be dealt with after the Sith. They are the priority. As soon as the Jedi see Obi-Wan for themselves they will see what we do, a Jedi in the light."
Anakin nodded slowly as Qui-Gon's words made sense, all he had to was get the Jedi to Obi-Wan's position then they would see it with their own eyes. He had to get help to Obi-Wan pronto.
"How do I find him though?" Anakin seemed to have a bright idea when he looked at Qui-Gon again. "Hey can you tell me where he is?"
Qui-Gon shook his head sadly and Anakin understood immediately, he had already attempted to find Obi-Wan.
"I can't seem to connect with him, Ani, like I said we've only really been able to when he's unconscious."
"Then how are you here with me?" Anakin couldn't understand why the force was aiding in their meeting instead of Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan's.
"It could be any number of reasons, we always struggled to maintain a strong force bond. Obi-Wan and I connected in different ways, he was always more affiliated with the unifying and I the living." Qui-Gon mused.
Anakin mulled over the new information if Qui-Gon couldn't tell him where Obi-Wan was then what were they supposed to do? Jedi teams were undoubtedly investigating leads but they all knew that could take hours, hours they did not have. Most of the fleet were heading back to the core worlds, taking the gamble that from Dooku's last known heading they would at least be closer to the final destination when they learned the truth.
"You can though," Qui-Gon continued, "You have the strongest bond I have ever seen Anakin. I can show you how to find Obi-Wan."
As Anakin looked up into the familiar kind eyes of Qui-Gon Jinn he found himself believing every word, deep down he knew that together they could find his Master.
Obi-Wan surfaced abruptly from his meditative state as he felt a persistent tugging on his mind, as he attempted to trace where the unusual disturbance was originating from it disappeared. Obi-Wan shrugged off the affair as possibly Qui-Gon attempting to contact him and thought no more on the subject. Stretching his muscles out into alertness Obi-Wan realised the ship he was travelling on no longer seemed to be in hyper-space, they had arrived.
He prepared himself mentally for his next move, realising Dooku's prying mind was reaching out for his. Obi-Wan was expected on the bridge it seemed. The bad feeling manifesting in his solar plexus had now developed into a monumental disturbance, destiny was fast approaching. He had never before in his life felt the weight of the galaxy as he did now, he knew, the force knew, this moment would shape the galaxy as he knew it.
He stretched out his limbs and breathed in a sigh of relief that the healing seemed to have done its job, there was thankfully a lack of pain when he moved, no usual muscle twinges as he worked unused appendages back to life. Each and every one of his cells felt energised, he felt strong and more so felt right with his course of action.
Obi-Wan stood and squared his tunics, assuring his saber was attached to his hip securely. The saber chimed in its purity as he gripped the weapon, centering himself with its currents as he savoured the last moments alone. Now ready as he would ever be, Obi-Wan strolled out of his temporary quarters in the direction of destiny.
Obi-Wan walked promptly towards the bridge, locking down his mind and slipping back into the all too familiar role of Dooku's apprentice. He had been at this too long, deceiving and pretending for too long. It was exhausting work keeping his true motives from somebody like Dooku, Ventress had never been fooled. She was too blinded by hatred towards him to see anything else, thankfully it didn't matter this late in the game she wouldn't make a move until her survival was secure. With somebody like Sidious around they all had to work together, regardless of their differences. He only hoped the Witch could hold back her trigger finger long enough to even the odds slightly, Obi-Wan had a big task ahead of him that was for sure.
He reached the vessel's bridge just as the final thought processes were locked away, Dooku turned and offered a brief smile in his direction, taking in his new-found strength and approving. Of course Obi-Wan also caught the death-glare and heard the growl being thrown his way from one extremely ticked-off Witch, he knew he shouldn't but Obi-Wan couldn't help but smirk back in her direction. He felt the ripple of amusement from Dooku at his defiant action, more prominently however he sensed the overwhelming rage build inside of Ventress, threatening to boil over and cut him to shreds. He met the challenge strongly making it perfectly clear he would have no qualms in cutting her down if she came close, thankfully Ventress didn't push the issue and resorted to storming off the bridge.
Dooku's chuckle reached his ears in the next second, the ex-Jedi certainly was enjoying their rivalry. Obi-Wan moved to stand by his new Master, knowing deep down that there could only ever be one to take that mantle. Qui-Gon.
"I see you are much improved." Dooku observed after his critical sweep.
Obi-Wan fought back the urge to verbally vomit over his next words, this would have to sound sincere.
"Yes, Master."
The slight smirk splayed on Dooku's widened to even fool Obi-Wan that this man was genuinely happy, well at least as joyous as he had seen the Count the past few days. Dooku was actually exuberant that Obi-Wan was standing by his side just as he had envisioned, had dreamed. The tremendous wave of guilt once again crashed against Obi-Wan's adamantine shields, he held strong throughout the assault never once showing outwardly his inner turmoil. The sooner this farce show was over the better.
Out of the viewport a planet was finally growing into existence, the vessel slowed as it prepared for atmosphere entry. Obi-Wan's breath caught in his chest as he took in the planet below, the evilness exuding from it. The planet's surface looked just as dark as it felt, the colour of the Sith themselves, Crimson. Huge dust storms raged across the surface inducing strange effects from orbit, it almost looked as if the storms were in fact doing battle, constantly re-emerging after death to duel forever. Huge stalagmite-looking rocks peppered the landscape, only interrupted by ancient buildings or stony statues. Obi-Wan recognised the planet, not only from the surface alone but from the screams of a hundred ghosts he could hear. Moraband.
He clamped down on his bond with Anakin as he felt a tug there again, how could his Padawan be able to even touch his mind from so far away? If Dooku caught even the slightest hint of what was occurring in his mind he was dead, Obi-Wan kept his perilous musings over the darkness and what it was doing to him as well as the reemergence of Anakin in his mind to himself. Dooku likely thought his rise in heart rate was due to apprehension or even excitement over the planet below and the foe he could feel from even here. In truth Obi-Wan was frightened, he had imagined the worst or thought he had anyway but being above the Planet of the Sith housing the most powerful Sith was something else entirely. He could feel just how much darkness engulfed this place and the most heart-breaking fact was the lack of light. In all his life no matter how he let his emotions consume him or how much evil he came across, Obi-Wan had never felt a place where darkness reigned supreme enough to actually extinguish the light. This was his worst nightmare…
Soon enough the ground grew larger as their ship swooped and swerved the rocky terrain, Dooku indicated to the pilot to land closer to what appeared to be a temple. On closer inspection Obi-Wan realised it was in fact a Sith temple, the fact made him recoil from the force. On this planet it was like touching the darkness all over again, drawing on it as it empowered his muscles, gave him strength. Dooku and company would thrive with this power he would not, Obi-Wan sought out the force that he believed in and was thankful that finally he caught hold of just a slither of light. It was enough. Thankful that even on a Sith Planet the light could never truly be eradicated, the longer he focused on the slither the more prominent it became. He breathed in the currents and prepared himself to face the product of evil as darkness swept across the planet's surface, Sidious.
"You recognise the planet?" Dooku queried, thankfully too busy with the preparations to notice Obi-Wan's slight tremor in his hand.
"Moraband," Obi-Wan grimly replied.
Dooku strode back towards Obi-Wan now the final preparations were complete. "Not from personal experience I imagine?" He asked with an amused twinkle in his gaze.
"Ah no…" Obi-Wan chuckled lightly, why in the blazes would he ever put himself through this madness willingly.
"I thought not, the Jedi fear the Sith."
'And quite rightly to…' Obi-Wan thought to himself as he felt the darkness brush up against his psyche again, prying tendrils attempting entry into his mind. He shook off the prying thoughts and once again felt as if he was being watched, it was the most peculiar feeling like a nagging in the back of his mind.
"Can you feel him, Obi-Wan?" Dooku growled as he indicated his greatest enemy, of course Obi-Wan could feel him. He had never felt anything or anyone so powerful in all his years. "Sidious…" Dooku finished in a feral voice not much above a whisper, venomously stating his intentions with words alone.
"Yes…" Obi-Wan began just about managing to keep the tremor out of his voice, he couldn't help but feel the shiver traversing his spine however as a dark presence pressed against him again. "I can feel his power."
Obi-Wan spoke the truth as he couldn't help but keep a small quiver out of his tone, this Sidious scared him and he couldn't hide it.
Dooku seemed to be unaffected by the same emotions, perhaps his hatred and loathing for the dark lord was serving to blind him in a sense. He would race head first towards the powerful lord fuelled by thoughts of revenge, not once stopping and heeding the rational knowledge that this Sith Lord could crush them all.
A hand reached for his shoulder and Obi-Wan forced himself to meet Dooku's stare, there was no hint of the man Obi-Wan had witnessed earlier, no lightness in him. This man was consumed and overwhelmed by hatred, so much so that even his eyes had turned a ghastly shade of yellow.
"He cannot stand against the both of us, Obi-Wan, his power will fall under our wrath," Dooku promised, eyes glinting over the imaginings of Sidious' death.
He nodded in agreement which served to satisfy Dooku, the ex-Jedi stared out along the wide expanse eyes fixed on the temple, gleaming gaze picking out Sidious out of all the darkness on the planet. Obi-Wan wished he could believe as Dooku could, not with the whole destroying thing obviously but with the fact that together they could overcome this great enemy. He could see now why Dooku wanted an apprentice, a strong apprentice. The Sith Lord held as much presence in the force as Master Yoda did, force more than Anakin did, for the dark though not the light. The contrasts were truly staggering.
As Obi-Wan thought back to Anakin he realised a lot of the tugging on his mind could be traced back to their bond, perhaps the boy was attempting to make contact? Obi-Wan couldn't hear anything or even feel anything however so it appears the desperate attempt was in vain. His Padawan must be worried, Obi-Wan had essentially bid him farewell and with the new facts Obi-Wan was becoming more sure of his fate. It was alright though, if he were to die this way then his duty would be complete and now the Jedi had the information they needed to carry on, hopefully the galaxy would not fall the same way as it did before. Perhaps his death would prove to be for a good cause.
Obi-Wan followed the Count off onto the planet's surface as their vessel finally landed near to the Sith Temple, Ventress had already disembarked by the time he touched foot on Moraband. The ground felt warm under his boots, the searing heat already heating the soles of his feet. As they walked towards fate, destiny, death, Obi-Wan felt a real presence of Anakin in his mind even if it were for just a fleeting second. His Padawan had managed to connect with him even with being so many light-years away, the second presence almost caused Obi-Wan to double over in surprise, he realised that even though Anakin meant well this would only cause as a distraction. They had said their goodbyes and as much as it broke his heart Obi-Wan proceeded to block off the connection, seemingly for good.
As he, Ventress and Dooku strode towards the ever-growing evil emanating inside the temple he realised the only one out of all them that was confident seemed to be Dooku, it was over-confidence however. He could tell by Ventress' slight fidgeting that she was apprehensive over the upcoming meeting, she was the sensible one here. Only a fool would be walking towards this fate with open arms, it only served to prove his thoughts about Dooku. The man was too blinded by revenge.
Dust clouds swam around the trio as they walked, soon enough blocking their viewpoints in several directions. When Obi-Wan glanced back he found the ship was no longer visible, lost behind their wake. He smiled at the irony, there would be no turning back now.
In another part of the galaxy Anakin Skywalker was in deep concentration, he strove to connect with Obi-Wan's mind just as Qui-Gon had instructed, managing brief connections to carry out what Qui-Gon explained. He and Qui-Gon knew that even with their incredible bond that at this distance communication would be impossible, the best that Anakin could hope for was to be linked long enough to be able to see what Obi-Wan was seeing, maybe even understand a thought process.
Of course the harder Anakin strained the more sweat dripped down his brow, the more strain he put on his own exhausted systems, Qui-Gon sat beside the Padawan as he struggled through natural barriers Obi-Wan had erected. As he caught flashes of memories or thoughts he shouted them out for Qui-Gon to remember, hopefully they could paint enough of a picture to garner Obi-Wan's location.
"A ship, above a red planet."
Qui-Gon reassured Anakin as he was once again thrown out of his mentor's mind, it was incredibly straining to establish a connection across the distance of space itself. Anakin reimmersed himself in the force and endeavoured to get more information, specifics.
"Incredible evil, I'm hearing words… Sith Planet."
Anakin gasped as the connection was shut off again, seemingly from Obi-Wan's end. He didn't know why Obi-Wan was kicking him out but he must have a good reason, he could sense his Master's fear over the darkness below. A darkness so evil that the entire planet consumed nearly all light. He shivered as the feeling finally fell away, looking up hopefully at Qui-Gon to see if that information was enough.
"I'm sorry, Ani, there are a few Sith Planets, we need something more," Qui-Gon apologetically answered, feeling the guilt over asking such a tremendous ask of a mere Padawan.
Anakin nodded his understanding and readied himself again, he had to make this connection worth it they were running out of time. Not to mention Anakin was exhausted, he almost felt like passing out the last time he couldn't keep this up forever. He delved deeper than ever before, straining with every inch of his mind towards Obi-Wan. For one brief moment Anakin felt himself inside Obi-Wan's mind, he gazed around upon the dust-ridden planet and started to shout everything he could see and everything Obi-Wan could feel.
"Rock planet, no life, temple, Dooku, Sidious is nearby too in the temple." Anakin reeled off the information as quick as lightning, gasping as he finally stumbled upon the word he was looking for. The planet name.
"Moraband!" He exuberantly shouted as his eyes flew open and he collapsed back on the medical table, exhaustion setting in as he realised he was spent.
"Easy, Anakin, easy…" Qui-Gon almost went to reach out to the Padawan before realising the impossibility of the action. "You did it, Ani."
Anakin breathed in deep gulps of air as he fought the urge to black out, he had almost gone too far in the last attempt. The fact that truly terrified him though was how Obi-Wan had felt when he was inside his mind, he felt the elder Jedi come to terms with his likely death and his farewell to Anakin.
Even if Anakin had been able to stay longer he knew he would have been kicked out almost immediately, Obi-Wan had blocked off their bond so he would not be distracted in the upcoming battle. Anakin had felt the tremendous power of the dark side on Moraband, had felt the over-powering presence of Sidious just as Obi-Wan had. Anakin was fearful for his Master.
"He was so powerful…" Anakin managed to splutter out, his mind finally righting itself to compile a coherent sentence. If Palpatine had felt that powerful from being so far away then what was it like to be up close… Anakin realised he never wanted to find out the answer to that question.
"In the dark side, Anakin, that is the difference." Qui-Gon's worried expression swam into Anakin's view as his sight finally righted itself.
Anakin didn't have time to ponder on Qui-Gon's words, the Jedi needed to get to Obi-Wan now otherwise he would surely fall. Anakin didn't know if he could live in a world where Obi-Wan Kenobi didn't exist, he sure as hell didn't want to find out. He raced out of the room in search of the closest Jedi, with the one goal in mind of passing on the new found information about Moraband. If the Jedi would question how he knew Anakin would simply explain the matter later, as soon as Yoda heard the older Jedi Master would surely see the truth in the words.
As Anakin rocketed away on his mission Qui-Gon was left alone in the med-bay, he sighed as he once again attempted to connect with Obi-Wan but was rebuffed. It seemed his old Padawan wasn't just shielding from Anakin, he was with Qui-Gon too. Whether that was a subconscious decision or not the outcome was still the same, for now it seemed Obi-Wan was on his own.
With that deadly reminder Qui-Gon went to the shadow of Anakin, the one person who had the ability to tip the scales in their favour. The boy may not believe in his destiny but Qui-Gon did. He had seen it. Anakin Skywalker was more powerful and influential than he believed, he just needed someone to show him the way. Qui-Gon vowed to help the Padawan save his Master, he could not change history just to see his Padawan befall death. Anakin and Obi-Wan together were going to defeat the Sith Lord, Qui-Gon would see to it.
As soon as Obi-Wan stepped foot inside the temple he had to brace himself, the intrusion into his mind was not a welcome one. Ghosts from the past as well as Sith's voices rang inside his mind seeing the truth immediately, he was not an agent of the darkness.
'Little Jedi hiding in the shadows..' One mocked.
Obi-Wan recoiled as the voices grew louder, the words worse the further he walked into death's jaws. Dooku didn't seem to notice which was a blessing, the man already had his saber hilt in his hands as he zoned in on the reason they were here. He felt Ventress sneer which indicated she knew and had noticed his struggles, as always.
He strove to block out the remaining whispers as they grew closer to the centre of the temple, the power of the dark side here was simply striking it actually took Obi-Wan's breath away. His muscles twitched near the hilt of his saber, ready to ignite the blade if any were to come near him. Ventress actually looked at home in the surroundings which didn't serve to surprise Obi-Wan too much.
As the trio crossed the last threshold into the temple the weight of this task was inevitably felt, this was the crossroads in the galaxy. Whatever occurred here would decide the fate of billions.
Obi-Wan was brought out of his musings as he caught sight of Palpatine, the reason all of their lives had collided so spectacularly. The old man stood in the center of the arena, crimson saber already lit. Ready for battle… The eerie glow served to bring some light into the shadowy room, leaving a deadly echo on the Sith Lord himself.
Obi-Wan attempted to peer under the man's hood as he Ventress and Dooku strode to meet the Sith Lord, he couldn't see much but he could see enough of the man's face to identify it to be Palpatine indeed. If the face wasn't enough then the voice certainly was when he spoke, just as Obi-Wan remembered from the visions.
"Darth Tyranus, you come here to challenge me?" The Dark lord sneered, clearly amused by the idea.
"I come here to end you," Dooku growled back allowing his saber to free itself also. The thrumming echoed around the room as both crimson weapons outshone the darkness.
"Big words for one so weak he needs help."
Obi-Wan could feel what the words were doing to Dooku's temperament, he groaned inwardly as the Sith was accomplishing exactly what he wanted which was to unsettle Dooku. Then again these people drew power from hatred so maybe the Sith Lord's taunts would indeed be his undoing. From his left Obi-Wan heard Ventress also draw both her saber's, he was the only one to go it seemed.
As he stared at the surprisingly still form of Sidious, in contrast Dooku was shivering with near-uncontrollable rage, unwanted flashes reformed in his mind. Flashes from the visions which continued to haunt him long after witnessing them. Obi-Wan saw Palpatine take away the boy he loved, corrupt his Padawan, change Anakin into the monster that was Vader. He felt himself start to lose control as the unwanted emotions resurfaced, the whispers in the dark seemed to goad him on as he struggled to release the fury. Dooku noted the anger and smiled approvingly, the action alone made Obi-Wan push harder for the hate to disappear. He had to be balanced if he were to have any chance over Palpatine. Of course his little act wouldn't hold up in a fight, not once Dooku saw he wasn't willing to draw on his loathing for this creature.
Perhaps I'm not releasing everything… Obi-Wan mused as he grimaced over the image of Anakin's burning corpse, this man standing before him was responsible for all of it, for Qui-Gon…
The Sith Lord's attention snapped to him, possibly being alerted to the attention and Obi-Wan felt a shiver crawl up his spine as the man he knew as Chancellor pressed against his mind. Obi-Wan snapped back as the Sith Lord pried, not willing to give the enemy anything that could be used against him. Of course with one so powerful the mind probe had revealed something, Palpatine could sense how much he hated him just not why. Obi-Wan would never let him see what could be, it would make the man's thirst for power grow exponentially.
"You brought a Jedi along," The man purred. "An angry Jedi…" His cackling rebounded off the walls as the Sith Lord thought of the irony, he was the only true Sith here.
"He is my apprentice." Dooku allowed a smirk to spread across his face as Sidious' cackles stopped.
"There can only be two…" The man reminded his former apprentice, threat clear to all in the room.
Obi-Wan's pure azure saber joined the melding of lights as he noticed a flicker of movement coming from the dark Lord, he was preparing to strike. Ventress shifted next to him which meant the Witch had too noted the change in stance, each of them had their saber's ready to duel. Now just to find out who would make the first move…
"And there will be," Dooku promised, his own intent to end his former Master's life out in the open. As if any of them needed the words, everyone present could feel Dooku's disdain for Sidious.
"We shall see…" Sidious grinned before launching into a frenzied attack.
It had begun.
A/N - I know I know, a little bit of a pain leaving it on that note but I had to split it somewhere! As you can probably imagine everything kicks into top gear in the next few instalments :D
Until next time...
