Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, but I wouldn't mind if I did.
It's all in a Padawan's Job
Chapter 4
Ahsoka's POV
I ran into the Throne Room on the Star Destroyer with my lightsabers on. As I entered, I saw Anakin kneeling in Force-binders inside a ray shield near the throne at the top of the stairs. I quickly ran up the stairs to Anakin, but a voice stopped me.
"Padawan Tano, so glad you could join us," Darth Sidious said as he turned to face me in his throne-like chair. "Skywalker here was just about to fully turn, but he remembered he still has to fight for you, even though he failed with everyone else," I saw Anakin look at me with sad eyes, but I still had to ask.
"Obi-Wan, Luke, Leia…and Padme…they're..." I couldn't even finish.
"Dead, yes," Sidious finished for me. "And all because Skywalker here wasn't strong enough to save them," he said with mock sadness. I gasped, and now realized why the Force was darker and colder than before. Four of the bright stars were gone, and only two remain. One was already tainted. "If he was my apprentice before, I could have shown him how to save them from death,"
"That's a lie!" I shouted at him, and quickly I ran up the stairs as I put my lightsabers at his throat. He didn't even show the tiniest bit of fear. "You won't tell him, because you don't know! You didn't know before-" I stopped myself as I remembered that Sidious used the word "before" in the last sentence. I stilled and widen my eyes as I looked at Anakin. "Why?" I asked in a whisper. Anakin refused to look at me, instead decided to look at the Force-binders, but I felt his anger directed at me.
Sidious laughed evilly at me. "So it seems your little plan didn't work," I look to him in astonishment. "Oh, don't be so surprised I found out about it, I'm the Emperor for a reason," I shook my head at him and trying to figure out which plan he knew and if he knew about Qui-Gon. "Now here's my part of the plan," he continued, pressing a few buttons on his throne. I saw the ray shield around Anakin disappear and his Force-binders slip off his wrists. As he stood up, facing away from me, Sidious gave the order I never wished to hear. "Kill her," I saw his yellow eyes gleam devilishly as Anakin said the thing I never wanted to hear outside of my visions.
"Yes Master,"
He quickly turned and attacked my stomach, which I barely blocked in time. He attacked again and again, driving us away from Sidious. I was forced onto the defensive and I shook my head at him.
"Master what are you doing?" I furiously ask him as I duck from a swing to my neck.
"I'm trying to kill you because everything is your fault," he replied angrily as I tried to kick his lightsaber out of his hand.
"What?" I asked him, but Anakin grabbed my ankle when I kicked him and pulled on it, making me lose my balance. I fell onto the ground hard, my head at the beginning of the flight of stairs as my body was awkwardly angled up the stairs. I felt pain in the back of my head, and I knew I bruised a headtail. I gasped as I brought my lightsaber and shoto up just in time to block him from trying to stab me in my heart. We locked lightsabers, with Anakin pushing down while I was just trying to get my lightsabers free.
"They're gone because of you, I turned because of what you did, and I'm going to kill you because of what you have done," Anakin told me, and I saw yellow flood into his eyes. I shook my head, as I realized that maybe he was right, and that everything is my fault. That even after all I did, I may have just brought more destruction to the galaxy and to the people I cared about. I freed my lightsabers from the lock, and I spoke quickly before he would kill me.
"Maybe everything is my fault, and everyone is gone because of me, but killing me won't bring them back, Anakin. Kill me if you wish, but there is one thing you must know; Sidious doesn't know how to bring people back from the dead or stop them from dying, only Plagiues knew how, and the secret died with him,"
"Liar!" Anakin shouted at me and brought down his blade. I saw it as it plunged through my skin, and felt it stab through my heart, lungs, ribs, everything in its path and out my back. I wanted to scream, I wanted to cry, but I didn't. Instead I told him something.
"Just like how the secret to talk with the dead will die with me…and you think you have it but…you don't…" I told him, and I felt my blood start to pool around me. Anakin looked at me with victory and hatred in his eyes, but, as I looked deeper, he was crying on the inside at what he's done.
I heard Sidious evil laugh crackle all around me, I saw Anakin's evil yellow eyes as he was permanently Vader now, and I felt myself slipping away...
I tumbled onto the floor as I woke up; sweating and breathing heavily as I looked furiously around to see where I was. Soft white carpet, luxurious-looking bed next to me, and a window in front of me where I landed. I let out a breath of relief that I wasn't one with the Force just yet, when I reminded myself that I was in a guest room at Padme's lake house, in the Lake Country, on Naboo, in the Chommell sector, in the Mid Rim.
I got up off the floor and dusted myself off before I plopped myself onto the bed. I looked out the window that surrounded the entire bed, and took up half the wall. I could tell it was almost morning by the changing colors in the sky; the warm orange glow lightly pushing away the dark blue, but the sun was rising on the other side. I frowned, wanting to see the sunrise so I could think about what my dream, premonition, vision, or whatever it is, meant. I grabbed my boots that were near the bed and slipped them on. I slept in my outfit since I had nothing to change into, but I did end up regretting it since the white sheets now had ash on them. I grimaced at the sight, but decided that Padme would understand.
I quietly opened the door to the hallway and looked around. Not that I was scared or anything, I just didn't want to disturb anyone that might be walking in the hallway. It was clear, so I walked out towards the kitchen area. None of the droids were in here, and I guessed they were with Anakin and Padme in their room. I took a fruit from the bowl on the counter and took a bite. I smiled at the sweetness of the fruit, and how it was much better than the ration bars I've been eating for the past couple of days. I walked to the balcony with the fruit, and frowned when I couldn't see the sunrise there. I walked back inside towards the hallway to see if there was a backyard of some sort. To the right of the hallway, there was a door that I didn't see earlier. I opened it, and was pleased to find a flight of stairs going down to a grassy hill that face a waterfall some distance away and the sunrise.
I walked down the stairs and found the center of the grassy hill area. I sat myself down of the soft grass, and it reminded me of the park back on Coruscant. I took another bite of the fruit as I watched animals fly overhead. I couldn't recall their name, and it was too early to be having a pop quiz on Naboo's wildlife. I watched the sun as it rose over the waterfall, its warmth light on my skin, not heavy heat like on Mustafar. I enjoyed the moment I was in, with the soothing waves of the waterfall, happy sounds from the animals around me, and the feel of the soft grass mixed in with the sun's warmth.
I sighed as I contacted Qui-Gon to ask if he sent me the vision. It was disturbing what my last words were in the vision because it was true. Anakin and Obi-Wan were only able to communicate with him last night because they were Force-sensitive, but he can only come into the physical world through a living Force-sensitive being in meditation(in the Light Side of the Force) or if he already connected to them before, which was me at the time.
"Qui-Gon, are you there?" I got my answer as he started to appear at my right, and I felt some energy be taken from me to morph him faster in the physical world. He became the form he was in last night, but I noticed a big hole near the center of his stomach. I lifted one of my eye markings.
"Um…Qui-Gon, did you have an accident in the afterlife?" I asked him, and he gave me a puzzled look.
"Look at your stomach,"
"Oh! How did that appear again?" he wondered out loud. He waved a hand over the hole and it was instantly replaced with what should have been there.
"Was that how you…you died?" I hesitantly asked him. I still didn't know him very well, and I hoped he wouldn't get upset if this was a touchy subject for him.
"Yes, that was the blow that ended my life, Ahsoka. It was by Darth Maul on this planet actually," he answered, and I was relived he didn't sound upset, so I went on.
"Then Master Kenobi killed him?"
"Yes, but before I became one with the Force, I told him to train Anakin, as it was my dying breath," he sighed. "But I always regretted that it was. I wanted to tell him how proud I was of him, and how I knew he would be on the Jedi Council one day, unlike me," he chuckled, but I could tell he was disappointed with himself.
"Then you should go tell him that," I said with smile. Then quickly added, "After we've discussed what I've called you for," he nodded.
"It's about that dream of yours, isn't it?"
I nodded. "Did you show it to me?"
He shook his head. "If it was me, you would have heard my voice in the background. That leaves the Force or Sidious,"
"It wasn't the Force because I'm not that powerful to see a vision like that so clearly. It's Sidious, and he most likely wants me to lose faith in Anakin," My breath hitched as I came to a realization. "He knows! He must know about me and how I turned Anakin back to the light! He knows, and now he's made a new plan, one with me being killed…" I gulped.
"It seems so Ahsoka, but have faith in the Force, and everything will work out," Qui-Gon told me and I nodded.
"Everything will, even if it costs my life," I said with this new determination that suddenly welled up inside of me. Qui-Gon smiled at me, and then he snapped his head to the house.
"It seems someone is heading this way," I stretched out with the Force to sense who it was. "Best that I take my leave now, but Ahsoka, you have to tell him," he told me.
"Fine, but you have to tell him!" I told him with a smirk on my face. His face showed annoyance, but he agreed. With a spark of light and some more of my energy, he was gone.
I looked at the fruit in my hand. It was finished with, but I needed to get rid of the core. I looked up and saw some flying animals above me. I threw it up to them. Most of the animals flew away from it in fright, but one decided to catch it in its beak. The rest became jealous, and tried to take it, but the one who caught it was already flying away. I laughed at them.
"And what is so funny?"
I stopped laughing and turned around to look at Anakin. He was wearing a plain t-shirt with sleep pants. His hair looked damp, and I guessed he just taken a shower. I noticed he still wanted an answer.
"Oh, the animals were jealous of the one animal that got the core of my fruit and started to chase him," I told him. He nodded as he came to sit down next to me.
"How is everyone else doing?" I asked him, trying to make conversation.
"Obi-Wan is meditating, while Padmé and the twins are still sleeping," he smiled at me. "They looked so cute," I smiled too, relived that they were all safe and not...I stopped the thought there.
"What are you doing up?" I bit my lip, trying to find an excuse. I knew I had to tell him about my dream at some point, but I didn't want to ruin his morning so quickly.
"I wanted to watch the sunrise," I tell him, as it was partly true. The sunrise was almost finished, and we watched the last of it.
"I can sense your troubled, Ahsoka," he gave me a serious look. "What's wrong?"
I sighed. "Master-"
"Anakin, Ahsoka, you can call me Anakin now,"
I was shocked. "But Master-"
"Anakin, Ahsoka. I doubt I can be called 'Master' since I did destroy the Jedi Order and turn to the Dark Side," he sighed.
I really didn't want to deal with this right now, even though I hoped to have him tell me that after I was Knighted, but I guess that was out the window.
"Okay Anakin," it sounded foreign on my tongue. "I had a...dream last night," his breath stopped short. "And it was about you and me..." I trailed off, not sure if I should give him the details.
"Go on Ahsoka, I know there is more,"
I relented and told him the dream, every little detail. When I finished, he took in deep breath, but didn't say anything.
"And now he knows about me, about how I saved you, and he knows I'm still alive-"
"Wait, 'still alive'?" Anakin interrupted. He looked at me shocked. "What do you mean?"
I look at Anakin with a pained expression. "Anakin, you killed me during Order 66,"
SWSWSWSW
Ahsoka's POV
"Younglings settle down, we are safe in here," I said to a group of ten younglings. We were in the Council Room at the Jedi Temple. I was tending the group of younglings when we heard blaster shots ring through the halls. I immediately felt the Dark Side of the Force take over the Light Side as the Jedi were being killed in their home. I then rushed the younglings to the Council Room, hoping nobody would look here.
"Look! It's Master Yoda's chair!" I turned to see the younglings playing in it.
"Hey you can fit in it perfectly! Let me try,"
"Ha you're too fat!"
I chuckled at them as I walked over to Master Skywalker's chair. It was a simple chair, but had that plush to it when I touched it. Speaking of him, I sensed his presence nearby, but it seemed dark. He must have taken the death of the Jedi hard.
The door to the room opened, and I knew instantly something was wrong. His hood was up and his head was bowed.
"Master?" I took a hesitant step towards him. "Master?"
"I don't want to do this Ahsoka, but you're a traitor, just like the rest of the Jedi," his tone made my blood run cold and shivers run down my back.
"Younglings get behind the chairs behind me," I said over my shoulder, and then turned back to Anakin. "Master, what are you talking-" Before I could even finish, he attacked and I brought up my lightsaber and shoto in shock. "What are you doing?" I exclaimed, but he ignored me as he tried to slice me through my midsection. I blocked it, and I tried to look at my Master, but to no avail. He sliced again at my midsection, and I blocked it. I was on defense since I didn't want to hurt him, even though he was trying to hurt me. I back flipped as he attempted to remove my legs. The wind from my flip removed his hood as I turned back to look at him.
Yellow eyes looked back at me.
"No…" I whispered as realization hit me. "No…it can't be true!" I suddenly found myself angry at him. I lunged at him and locked our lightsabers. "How could you? After all you've done for good, and you just toss it out the window and turn to the Dark Side?" He broke the lock and we parried each other's attacks with more ferocity than last time. Then, he somehow broke through my defenses and used the end of his lighsaber to hit my montral. I gasp, and in the one split second of distraction, he stabbed me in the chest.
I fell to my knees as I felt the blood flow down my body. I took in ragged breaths and looked at the younglings. Their eyes were filled with raw fear, and I didn't blame them. I gave them a sad smile to at least clear some of that fear. I knew what Anakin was going to do to them next with no doubt, but I decided to delay that as long as I can.
I looked up at Anakin and saw his yellow eyes have a streak of blue in them. "I hope…I made you proud…Skyguy,"I smiled at him, as I was trying to tell this to the good Anakin I knew. My world started to go black, as I felt myself fall over and close my eyes.
SWSWSWSW
Ahsoka's POV
As I finished, I noticed Anakin was shaking, but I didn't blame him. Retelling two dreams is bad enough, but when you get killed by the same person in both, and that same person is who you're telling, it's hard to take in.
"Mas-Anakin?"
"Why Ahsoka?" he asked me in a hushed whisper, but his voice grew louder as he talked. "Why are you still helping me? It's obvious that I'm going to kill you sooner or later, so why are you still here?"
I was beyond shocked by what he said. "Anakin," I said, my voice hard and serious. "I am still here because I have faith in you, which is what Sidious doesn't want me to have. I believe in you. I believe you will defeat Sidious and bring peace, Anakin!"
He stood up as, as did I. "Maybe I will, but at what cost? After I kill everyone I hold dear?" he practically shouted at me, and he got in my face.
"But you won't! You'll see past the lies Sidious will tell you because you are stronger than him!"
"Stronger maybe, but wiser? He manipulated me, The Republic, and the Jedi for years! There's a thin line between truth and lie, but with him, he erases it all together! He even made me believe the Jedi were trying to take over the Republic! What do you have to say about that?"
I could say nothing to that because it was true. Anakin was smart, but if this man manipulated him for years, how could he outsmart him now? I broke the fierce gaze we made and looked at the grass. I heard Anakin sigh and out of the corner of my eye I saw him cross his arms.
"Maybe you were meant to turn to the Dark Side,"
That came out of my mouth before I could stop it, but it was a thought that's been on my mind ever since Qui-Gon left.
"What? You think I was meant to turn to the Dark Side?" I could hear his surprise in his voice.
I looked at him with a shrug. "I mean, since you're the Chosen One, you have to bring balance to the Force. But don't you need to find balance within yourself before you bring balance to the Force?" He nodded slowly, so I continued. "And in order to find balance, you need to have experienced both sides. It's like having to know two sides of a story in order to make a solution,"
A small silence stretched between us as Anakin mulled over my words. He let out a breath before he answered. "I guess you could be right Ahsoka, but I don't like thinking that turning to the Dark Side is part of my destiny,"
I gave him a small smile. "Who would?"
Just then the door to the house opened with Obi-Wan. "Pardon me for interrupting if I did, but I think you two need to see this," he was wearing his same outfit also. Guess Anakin was the only one to change. We nodded and went up the stairs, Anakin first.
When I was about to pass Obi-Wan, he softly grabbed my shoulder and turned me around.
"Thank you," he whispered to me, and I could see in his grey-blue eyes that he meant it.
"You're welcome," I whispered back with a smile. 'Seems that Qui-Gon kept his side of the deal.' He let go of my shoulder and we walked to the living room to see the holo tv above the fireplace on. I noticed Padmé was there with the twins in hand on the couch. She looked up when we arrived and spoke.
"Palpatine made a short address to the public before he left to here," she said and turned up the volume.
"The new Emperor of the first Galactic Empire will now speak," said a female voice, and then it showed Sidious with his hood pulled up near a small shuttle.
"Citizens of the Galatic Empire, I am heading to Naboo on a very personal reason; Jedi have been spotted on Naboo," gasps were heard from behind the camera. "Yes, I know how shocking that is since the Jedi are traitors, but to have the nerve to go to my home planet," he paused and put a hand to his heart. "It pains me, but I do have some good news," I cocked my head to the side. What good news could he possibly have? "My apprentice, Darth Vader, is on the planet at this moment, hunting those horrible Jedi down. And once all the Jedi are gone, we shall have peace!"he finished, earn a loud applause. I shook my head at those people clapping for him, but since they didn't know the whole story, I can't blame them.
"And that was Emperor Palpatine, who is now about to make his way to Naboo," the female speaker said, and the screen showed Sidious walking onto the transport with men in clad red armor. The shuttle flew up towards what was once a Republic Cruiser used for the war, but I knew what it had become now.
Padmé turned off the tv and sighed. Obi-Wan started to run his hand through his beard, Anakin started to pace, and I crossed my arms over my chest as we had a silence as we thought over the address Sidious made.
Anakin was the first to break the silence by sighing in frustration. "I don't get it! Why would he say I'm on the planet as Darth Vader, even though he knows that I turned back?"
Obi-Wan had his answer. "He most likely wants the planet to feel safe that his apprentice is removing all the Jedi, and that the Nabooian people can live in peace,"
"That's a good point," I said. "But why would he not show an image of him for the people to see who his apprentice is?"
"I don't know," Anakin admitted, and then he looked at me. "Did he ever tell the public that I was in that suit in the different future?"
I shook my head. "He didn't need to because when you being put inside your suit, they presumed you dead to the public, but most people thought it was a lie because the great "Hero with No Fear" could not have been killed by a bunch of clones," I replied to him. He sighed in frustration once again, and then Luke started crying. Padmé tried to comfort him, but to no avail.
"He can feel your frustration, Anakin," Obi-Wan said, and I felt Anakin release his frustration into the Force as he said that. Anakin walked towards the crying kid in his wife's lap and lifted him up to cradle in his chest. I then noticed Leia, who wasn't crying.
"How come Leia isn't crying?" I asked. Anakin looked at Leia for a moment before he gave me his answer.
"She isn't as tuned to the Force as Luke is," he replied.
"But how can that be possible?" Obi-Wan asked. "They're Force-Twins; when together their powers multiply, am I correct?"
Anakin shrugged. "That's correct, but maybe they're different because the Force wants them to be,"
"Or maybe because they're the Chosen One's children," I couldn't help but mutter to myself. Luckily, nobody heard me. Luke calmed down afterwards and fell asleep. Anakin gave him back to Padmé, who was holding the also sleeping Leia.
"I'm going to put these two to bed, if you don't mind," she said as she left the room.
"I suppose we should get ready for our next battle against Sidious?" Obi-Wan said, and we all nodded.
"Especially you Snips, you've never gone against an opponent like him before," Anakin said to me. I scoffed at him.
"Anakin, I've gone against Grevious and Ventress, how bad could Sidious be? Besides, he's already deformed, so won't that give us an advantage?"
"Actually it could, but he has the bigger advantage of being able to use Force lightning, which is very deadly, and could kill you,"
"You speak of it like you've experienced it before,"
He grimaced. "I have, but they aren't very pleasant memories I want to recall right now," he moved towards the hallway. "Come on Snips, let's go practice outside since it's such a nice day outside," Obi-Wan and I followed him to the backyard, where we got into our fighting forms and activated our lightsabers.
"Alright Snips, see if you can disarm me and Obi-Wan at least once," Anakin told me.
"Or," I began, giving the men a small smirk. "Let's see who can disarm the fastest out of the three of us?" Anakin gave me a smug look.
"Oh, you're on,"
Okay, I am deeply sorry about the week delay but at least it made it up, right? I say that because this week, CST(California Standard Testing) is coming up and I needed to study. Now since the test last for two weeks, I honestly don't know when I'm going to get time to write this, but I will do my best and make sure I do type at least a paragraph a day. And I hope you guys will stay with me and my slow updates! And reviews are always welcomed! May the Force be with you! -Jordan