This chapter is LONG. Like, 4000+ words type long. So I hope that sort of makes up for the long wait.

Thanks to all of you who reviewed! Reviews keep me writing. Call them inspiration, if you want. ;)

Enjoy!


Ahsoka hugged her arms closer to her body as they hiked up through the mountain trail. The village wasn't too far from here; she could see the twisting buildings that were dwarfed by the mountains. The air was cooler up here and she could sense the dark side. This was the right place, she was certain.

Ahead of them, Obi-Wan stopped and held up a hand. "The Trade Federation base is just ahead," he said. "Stay alert. We don't know what- or who could be waiting for us."

Ahsoka caught sight of the base as they turned a corner in the trail. The building was shaped like a long, low rectangle with twin towers that rose up from either side of the building. There was a squad of droids patrolling the green in front of the building.

She glanced over at Obi-Wan and got the impression that he was doing some very quick thinking.

"This will work best if we split up," he said. "Ahsoka, you and the troopers cause a diversion while I find Anakin."

Ahsoka frowned. "Master... do you think you'll be able to rescue him by yourself? He could be injured. You might need my help."

"If he is badly injured, I will call you for help," Obi-Wan said firmly. "But this will work best if I go in alone."

Ahsoka didn't argue further, although she badly wanted to. She sighed. "Alright troopers, who's up for some target practice?"


"Er... Mistress?" A droid spoke up from behind her. "I've received word that a Jedi and a group of clones have engaged squad 3 in a firefight. Our forces are quickly being overwhelmed."

"Tano," Ventress said, striding to the door of the war room. It took her long enough.

"Mistress, there's been a breach in the east wall," reported a battle droid from the scanners.

Frowning, Ventress halted. So, Tano had brought reinforcements after all. But, which party would she be with? The attackers on the south side? Or had she breached the walls to the east?

Tano would want to get her Master back at all costs. She would most likely be the one on the east side.

"Send more reinforcements out to the south side," she ordered, then strode out into the corridor. She moved quietly staying in the shadows, hoping to catch the Jedi off-guard. Silently, fingers on the activator buttons of her lightsabers, she stole through the hallways until she heard a faint humming. A blue glow lit up the walls... a lightsaber?

Sure enough, a blue lightsaber moved into view and a second later she realized that:

This was not Tano.

She was going to enjoy her revenge on Obi-Wan Kenobi.

"Kenobi," she began, stepping out of the shadows, "I'm beginning to think it is your personal job to chase down Skywalker."

Kenobi merely lifted his blade, a grim look on his face. "Where is he, Ventress?"

Ventress raised her own weapons. Perhaps it was because Kenobi had felt Skywalker's suffering through the Force or because he just wanted to get this over with, but his Force-signature was tinged with impatience.

She decided to make the first move, letting the dark side fill her, then moving quickly to clash both lightsabers against his. Soresu's weakness was it's lack of movement and she intended to use that to her advantage, staying constantly on the move. Kenobi was slowly forced back down the corridor, though he parried every one of her strikes.

Ventress recognized his tactics- he was letting her tire herself out while wasting as little energy as possible. Then when she was exhausted, he would attack at full power.

She shifted her attacks to a higher speed; even Kenobi couldn't parry two blades at top speed forever. "You're wasting time, Kenobi. Every moment you spend fighting me, Skywalker's health is failing." Ventress delivered the last word with a glancing blow to his shoulder. The wound wasn't deep, but it would definitely slow him down. Kenobi grimaced and twisted away, eyes hardening at her words. It wasn't even a lie, not really. The prolonged exposure to the electric shocks, combined with the blaster wounds to his leg and back had left Skywalker in bad shape. The medical droids had been fairly sure that he would pull through but Kenobi didn't need to know that. Let him worry.

Now the Jedi had stepped up his attacks, his short, fast blows forced her to step back a few paces. If his shoulder was bothering him, he didn't let it show.

"Last chance, Ventress," he said calmly, though through the Force, Ventress could sense his worry for Skywalker. "Tell me where Anakin is."

"I will tell you nothing!" she hissed in between counterstrikes.

"She doesn't need to talk, Master Kenobi."

Ventress looked up at the sound of the new voice to see Tano standing in front of them, lightsabers at the ready.

It's about time.

"Ahsoka-" Kenobi's voice was tense as he twisted away from Ventress's blade- "I told you to stay with the clones!"

The girl ignored that. "Master, Artoo told me that the cell blocks aren't far from here. Go find Master Skywalker."

Ventress swiped her blade at Tano's torso and she was forced to nearly bend in half to avoid it. Scowling, she righted herself and retaliated by leaping into the air and bringing both blades down toward Ventress's head. Ventress swept her weapons up to block just in time.

"Go find Anakin!" Tano repeated. Kenobi seemed to hesitate, eyes darting back and forth between the Ventress and the Padawan. "Hurry!" Tano insisted. "I'll hold her off!"

Kenobi seemed to realize that if he attempted to argue with the girl, they'd both be there forever, so he simply nodded and took off. Ventress made no move to follow him. She knew chances of him finding Skywalker were slim and even if he did, he wouldn't get past security. That would give Ventress more then enough time to defeat Tano, who was her primary target anyway.

Then she would deal with Kenobi.


Obi-Wan raced down the hall, stretching out with the Force to sense for Anakin. In all the separatist bases he'd been in, all the corridors looked the same. There was no difference between the cell block and the mess hall corridor. The corridors for the command centre and the reactor room looked exactly the same. The building architecture wasn't going to help him find Anakin.

Unfortunately, the Force didn't seem to want to help him either. He could sense Anakin- he was definitely close by- but his Force presence was so weak that Obi-Wan couldn't pinpoint his location.

The Jedi Master cautiously looked around the next turn and saw two commando droids standing in front of the doorway. Interesting. Whatever was in that room, they didn't want getting out- or in.

Which meant, of course, that it was probably Anakin's cell.

Obi-Wan used the Force to crush the droids' circuits, then moved out into the hallway. Funny. He had destroyed the security without having to raise his lightsaber. Would Ventress really have left Anakin's cell so... loosely guarded?

The Force shouted a warning and without even thinking, he flattened himself against the wall. A streak of red flashed in front of him, just where his head had been moments before. He activated his lightsaber just as four droidekas rolled around the corner.

Any remaining doubts he may have had about this being Anakin's cell were banished- there was no reason for a simple prisoner to be so heavily guarded.

Obi-Wan looked around for a way to gain the upper hand over the droidekas. There was hardly any room to fight in the hallway and the droids had shields that a lightsaber couldn't penetrate.

A stack of metal crates sat at the end of the corridor. Perhaps a lightsaber wouldn't penetrate the shields, but the weight of the crates would almost certainly crush them.

Switching his lightsaber to his left hand and ducking around a corner, Obi-Wan let the Force run through him, levitating the crates over the droidekas. They never saw it coming. He released the crates and watched as they crashed through the shields and circuits, smashing the droids to the floor.

A simple touch of the Force pushed the wreckage away from the door and Obi-Wan stepped inside.

Instead of a jail cell, Obi-Wan found himself in a brightly lit room with several beds and two medical droids.

Why was the medical bay so heavily guarded? He wondered. Was it to throw me off Anakin's trail?

The two medical droids stepped back from the bed to look at him and Obi-Wan recognized the patient. He remembered Ventress's words-

"You're wasting time, Kenobi. Every moment you spend fighting me, Skywalker's health is failing."

Anakin was deathly pale, his torso and left calf wrapped in bandages. Upon closer examination, Obi-Wan noticed that he was shaking slightly- after-effects of electric torture.

"Halt," came a mechanical voice. The medical droid wielded it's many arms like weapons, a surgical knife pointed in his direction. Obi-Wan destroyed both droids with his lightsaber, then hurried to Anakin's side.

There was no way his former apprentice was well enough to get up and walk, but staying in the separatist base was not an option. Glancing toward the door once more, Obi-Wan used the Force to pull Anakin from unconsciousness. Normally that wouldn't have worked, but Anakin was too weak to do anything about it.

Anakin groaned, opening his eyes. He looked around, taking in his surroundings, then blinked as his eyes came to focus on Obi-Wan. "Master? What are you doing here?" he asked in a hoarse whisper.

"Good to see you too," Obi-Wan replied dryly. "The clones have engaged the droids in combat, so we should be able to get out fairly easily. If you can stand, that is."

Anakin struggled to sit up, wincing. "Where's Ahsoka? Did you send her back to Coruscant?"

Obi-Wan frowned. He had been hoping they wouldn't be having this conversation until later. "Actually, at the moment, she's holding off Ventress."

Anakin bolt upright, then gasped in pain. Obi-Wan reached out to steady him, but Anakin shrugged his hand away. "You let my Padawan face Ventress alone?"

"Have a little more faith in your apprentice, Anakin," Obi-Wan replied. "She will be able to hold out until I go back and help her."

"Then go." Anakin swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood, putting all his weight on his uninjured leg and gripping the edge of the bed. "I'll get out of here by myself."

"Anakin-" Obi-Wan resisted the urge to sigh in exasperation. "Look at yourself. You can't even stand- how do you hope to get out in one piece?"

Anakin shrugged, not quite managing to hide the pain he felt at that small motion. "I'll manage."

"I think not." Obi-Wan looked at Anakin's injured leg. "What happened to you?"

With a scowl, the Jedi Knight said, "I tried to escape and... got shot by a battle droid."

"Anakin..."

"Don't say a word."

Anakin allowed Obi-Wan to help assist him as he limped out the door, a seemingly permanent frown on his face. The corridors were silent, except for the sound of Anakin's uneven footsteps and the distant echoes of fighting.

"Oh, I forgot to ask," Anakin said after a while. His voice was quiet and he was staring straight ahead. His jaw was clenched, the only sign that he felt any pain. "What happened to your shoulder?"

Obi-Wan blinked. He had almost forgotten about the lightsaber wound in favour of Anakin's injuries. "Let's just say Ventress is in a bad mood," he quipped.

"And you left my Padawan with her, knowing that it was Ahsoka she wanted in the first place?" Anakin looked outraged.

"Ahsoka listens to me as well as you do, Anakin," Obi-Wan reminded him. "I wasn't willing to waste precious time arguing with her."

Anakin fell silent after that and before long, they reached the exit. The battle was raging on the far side of the building and there were no droids over here.

Anakin's breathing was shallow and his eyes seemed unfocused. He was stumbling every few steps now. They finally stopped a distance from the base and his former Padawan slumped to the ground. He definitely looked worse then he had when Obi-Wan had found him.

Maybe I shouldn't have destroyed those medical droids after all, Obi-Wan thought. He raised his comm. "Roan, come in. This is General Kenobi." The medic would at least be able to stable Anakin while he went back to help Ahsoka.

There was a crackle of static. "General, this is Waxer. Roan is down. Have you rescued General Skywalker?"

Blast! Obi-Wan cursed his luck. Now what?

"Yes," he answered, "but he needs medical attention."

"Our best bet would be to withdraw from the fight and go back to the ship," Waxer said.

"No... General Skywalker is in no condition to be moved any more than he has to be." Obi-Wan glanced back at Anakin, who was lying facedown, eyes closed. "Retreat from battle- your work is done."

"Yes sir." Waxer cut the communication.

Obi-Wan sighed. He would have loved to capture Ventress, but that wouldn't be happening.

"Choose between duty and friendship."

Was this what Yoda meant? Choosing between Ventress and Anakin... without a doubt, Anakin's lift was more important then Ventress's capture. And looking down at Anakin's pale, almost ashen face and ragged breathing, Obi-Wan knew that if he left him now, it might be too late to save him when he finally captured Ventress. He couldn't let Ahsoka continue to face Ventress alone either. He raised his comlink.

"Ahsoka, this is Obi-Wan."

The sound of tangling lightsabers filled his ears as Ahsoka answered. "Master- I'm a little busy here!"

"I found Anakin, but he need medical attention and the medic is down. Retreat... I'm not going to be able to help you."

For a moment, he thought Ahsoka was going to refuse. Then... "Understood, Master Kenobi."

The transmission ended.

Obi-Wan knelt beside Anakin and gathered the Force. He was no medic, but he could at least put Anakin in a healing trance that would keep him alive until they could get help.


Ahsoka flipped over Ventress's head and hit the ground running, Obi-Wan's words still echoing in her ears. How badly was her Master hurt?

The Force hit her like a tidal wave; she hit a wall and fell to the ground, dazed. Before she could get up, invisible fingers wrapped around her neck. Ahsoka's hands went to her throat, fighting to break the hold. She could see Ventress stepping closer, arm outstretched and fingers clenched in a fist.

She needed air. Her head was was beginning to pound and the world was swimming before her. Out of sheer desperation, she kicked out with both legs, catching Ventress in the stomach and knocking her off balance. The hold broken, Ahsoka fell to the floor.

Taking deep breaths, she got to her feet. Spotting Anakin's lightsaber on Ventress's belt, she called it to her with the Force and bolted down the corridor. Then she turned down a small passage, then another. Hopefully she could lose Ventress in the maze.

After a few minutes, the footsteps behind her faded away but Ahsoka didn't stop. She only slowed down when she was safely out of the base.

Looking around, she saw a flash of white in the trees not far away, then another. Those were almost definitely clones- droids were gold or black and Ventress would have attacked her by now. But just in case it was a trap, she moved silently toward the flash of white, staying out of sight until she could be sure that they were clones.

As Ahsoka drew closer, she saw with relief that they were indeed clones. Her relief quickly turned to horror when she noticed the figure on the stretcher behind them.

If it hadn't been for the fact that their bond was still intact, Ahsoka might have thought her Master was dead. He lay perfectly still and he was extremely pale. The bandages over his torso and leg didn't help the image much either.

"What happened to him?" Ahsoka ran the last few feet through the trees, stopping beside the stretcher.

One of the clones, who's name Ahsoka couldn't remember answered her. "He's sustained quite a few injuries including blaster wounds to his back and leg. We were worried the the electrocution would cause damage to his nervous system, but there was no lasting harm done."

Ahsoka didn't find that very reassuring. "Will he be okay?"

The clone nodded. "The ship is coming to pick us up, we'll be able to get him proper medical attention then."

Just then, the whir of engines above them made Ahsoka look up to see the republic ship hovering above them before it landed just outside the trees.

"Quickly," urged one of the clones. "The droids will be noticing us any second!"

The clones and the Jedi quickly boarded the ship, just as the first droids came into view. Laserfire flashed by Ahsoka's face and she drew back into the ship, feeling it lurch underneath her as it took off.

Sighing, she turned to Obi-Wan. "Well... I'd say this went worse then usual."

"It definitely wasn't one of our more successful missions," the Jedi Master agreed. "Did you find what you came for?"

Ahsoka blinked. She had almost forgotten all about the assassination and their reason for travelling to Vulpter. Then she remembered what she had seen in the computer bank.

"Yes," she replied. "The droid was ordered through the senate, by someone with very high clearance."

"Hmm..." Obi-Wan frowned. "That is troubling. I know that there are many corrupt people within the Senate. They would be easily bribed to buy a droid. What I want to know is why a Senator of the republic would help the separatists attain a code which would lead to the invasion of Coruscant."

"Well, at least now I have somewhere to start," Ahsoka said. "I'll add that to the list of questions to ask this Senator when I catch him." She cast a glance toward the back of the ship. "Will Master Skywalker really be okay?"

"He's going to be fine," Obi-Wan assured her. "Though he's not too happy with me for letting you face Ventress alone- I suspect you'll be hearing about that later."

Ahsoka winced. "Right... sorry for disobeying your orders, Master Kenobi." She had almost forgotten about that. Obi-Wan was not like Anakin- he was stricter with rules and regulations and he would almost certainly not let her off easily.

She wait for the scolding but it didn't come. "All's well that ends well, as they say," the Jedi Master said lightly. "And I must congratulate you on holding your own against Ventress. Very impressive."

Ahsoka massaged her throat. "She's getting stronger. I can sense it. I don't think I'll be able to hold her off like that again."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Yes, I've sensed it too. I would advise you not to face Ventress alone again."

"Yes, Master." Ahsoka privately thought that if Ventress was truly after her, she would have no choice but to face the assassin alone. She resolved to work on her lightsaber form as soon as they arrived back at Coruscant.


Anakin had decided when he was ten that he did not like medics. His opinion of them at twenty two had not gotten much better.

He lay on his back in the infirmary staring blankly at the ceiling. A few hours in a bacta tank had worked wonders on his injuries and he felt back to normal.

Or, he would have, if the meaning of the prophecy hadn't been on his mind, an invisible weight on his shoulders.

Now that he knew, what would he do with the knowledge? How would he protect Ahsoka from the "terrible price" that she would pay?

The door opened and Ahsoka entered, looking anxious. "Master!"

Anakin sat up, forcing a smile onto his face. "Good to see you, Snips. Although I believe I told you not to come after me?"

"You're welcome," Ahsoka said, rolling her eyes. "If we hadn't come, you'd either be dead, or getting shot by another battle droid."

Anakin glared. "What were you thinking, facing Ventress by yourself? You could have been killed!"

"I'm alive, aren't I?" Ahsoka crossed her arms defiantly.

Anakin sighed in exasperation. "Ahsoka- you have no idea what she's capable of. She wouldn't have killed you- she would have tortured you until you gave her the information she wanted."

Ahsoka looked down and Anakin hoped he was starting to get through to her.

"I wouldn't have talked,"she said quietly.

"You don't know that. The separatists are getting... creative with their interrogations. I got lucky, but the separatists have interrogation methods that can damage you for life."

Anakin saw Ahsoka's eyes flick toward his mechanical arm. He pretended not to notice. "Please just trust me when I tell you not to follow me into these kinds of situations. It's too dangerous."

Ahsoka narrowed her eyes. "Master, it's my life. Shouldn't I be able to choose when and how I put myself at risk?"

"Not when you can't make the right choices!"

"You mean you don't trust me with my life?"

Anakin gritted his teeth. "I mean, you can be reckless and it puts you in more danger then necessary."

Ahsoka began pacing. "Didn't you fly a Jedi Cruiser into a droid control ship, then eject at the last second just because you had no other way of destroying it?"

"That wasn't reckless, that was getting the job done." Anakin snapped.

"What if being reckless gets the job done?" Ahsoka retorted. "You're too protective- I haven't died yet, you know."

Anakin forced from his mind the image of her lifeless body falling to ground on Mortis. "I'm just trying to keep you alive!"

There was a ringing silence and his Padawan looked down, remorse washing through their now-open bond.

"I'm sorry Master," she said quietly. "I'm going up to the bridge. Here... you'll need this later." She held out his lightsaber. Anakin merely looked at it for a second before taking it.

"I'm sorry, too," he relented. "Thanks for getting this back."

"Your weapon is your life, remember?" Ahsoka smiled faintly, then left, leaving Anakin alone with his thoughts.


Upon their arrival on Coruscant, Anakin was greeted with the news that the Chancellor wanted to speak with him. He instructed Ahsoka to head back to the Temple, then took a speeder to the Senate.

Palpatine turned as Anakin entered his office, a pleased smile on his face. "Ah, Anakin. It's good to see you alive. It is, however, unfortunate that Ventress escaped."

Anakin nodded. "She won't evade us forever, Chancellor."

"She must be brought to justice for what she did to you," Palpatine said. "Torturing a prisoner is diabolical."

Anakin sighed, stepping closer to the window. "Unfortunately, the separatists disagree." It wasn't the physical torture that bothered him, so much as the Prophecy. He still had no idea how to save Ahsoka from a fate that seemed to be set in stone.

"Anakin? Are you alright?"

Anakin turned to see Palpatine looking at him with worry.

"I'm fine, Chancellor. Just a little preoccupied."

"Oh?" There was a curious tone in Palpatine's voice, prompting him to go. Anakin was silent for a moment. Palpatine knew most of his deepest secrets... he would help him.

"I found the Prophecy of the Chosen One at the separatist base I was trapped in."

Palpatine raised an eyebrow. "I thought you wanted to know what was in the Prophecy. Was it not what you expected?"

Anakin looked with unseeing eyes out into the traffic of Coruscant. "I... I am the Chosen One. The Prophecy practically says so. And a line in the prophecy... it describes my Padawan. It hints that harm will come to her... because of who I am." Anakin spun around and began pacing. "I don't know what to do- this prophecy is a thousand years old. How do you change something like that?"

Palpatine went and sat at his desk, steepling his fingertips together. "This is... troubling. What do your feelings tell you to do?"

Anakin shook his head. "I... don't know."

"I was once in a rather similar predicament to you," Palpatine said thoughtfully. "I was a Senator at the time, and my secretary, who was also a good friend of mine, was receiving threats because of her position. She knew much about my work, my speeches, everything. Eventually, she was attacked by the person who had been sending her threats. She survived, but she was badly shaken."

"What did you do about it?"

Palpatine sighed. "I dismissed her. She was better off without me, and a lot safer as well."

Anakin swallowed hard. "What... happened to her?"

"Oh, she went on to become a judge in one of the courts. Last I heard, she was quite happy."

Anakin had frozen. Palpatine must have noticed the stricken look on his face, because he hurried on.

"Of course, I'm not suggesting you dismiss your Padawan. No, but you know what they say... 'if you love something, set it free.'"

Anakin attempted to gather his thoughts. Dismiss Ahsoka? Never... he couldn't... they were a team...

Anakin stammered a goodbye to the Chancellor, then headed for the door.

Don't do it, don't do it, don't do it...

But what if letting her go was the only way to save her?

"There is a price to pay for balance, and the Learner will pay that price."

'If you love something, set it free'

"I dismissed her. She was better off without me, and a lot safer as well."

She's like my sister. How can I let her go?

Had Anakin not been so absorbed in his internal battle, he would have noticed a pair of eyes shine yellow with glee, a mouth twist upward in satisfaction and a Force presence subtly darken...


Well. Note to self- never go to Palpatine for advice. ;)

Reviews are appreciated!