Chapter 14

"You were right to say that this will change the Order forever." Windu said as he considered what he had just been told. Everything in him, all his upbringing, training, experience and beliefs pulled him one way, and yet...

"Master Yoda, by rights Skywalker, and maybe even Kenobi should he expelled immediately. Why is it that you believe they should not? One of them has broken the most sacred commandments of the code, the other has concealed it from us."

"The truth you speak."

In the few hours since dismissing Skywalker Yoda had done some serious soul-searching, and even though there were still many things to be considered, decided, he knew that this whole matter could not, mustn't be dismissed out of hand and be dealt with via the usual methods.

"Consider everything, we must."

"What do you mean?"

Yoda sighed. "Clouded for a long time, the Force has been. Tried to find a solution, we both have, but failed."

"Of course, but that does not excuse this blatant breach of the code."

"No, Master Windu, correct you are as well."

"Then..."

Yoda turned back and stared Windu down like only he could. "Unable to stand, an order unwilling to change will be. The right thing to do, the Reformation was at the time, but changed, times have."

Windu was forced to admit that Yoda had a point. "True, but that still doesn't mean we can or should abandon the code just like that, a Code that has stood for centuries."

"Abandon the code we will not. No. As you say, served us well, it has. But changed it has been before, has it not, hmm?"

With a visible unwillingness and worry Windu was forced to admit that again, Yoda had a point. "But that was when the Sith stood on our doorstep, when the Republic stood on the brink of defeat at the hands of the Sith."

Yoda shook his head. "In danger the Republic is. More enemies it has than the Separatists. Shown me this the Battle of Coruscant and the attacks on Jedi right here have."

"Do you really believe that the Sith are that dangerous to us and the Republic?" Windu sounded doubtful, so Yoda nodded emphatically.

"Dangerous, they always are. Now even more so. Nothing of the dark side in him, young Skywalker has, calm and serene now, he is."

"Even though he is threatened with expulsion from the Order?"

"Indeed. Accepted that he has, expected even. Been married to the Senator for a long time, he has. Impaired his duties, it has not."

Windu thought back on the last few years, and true, Skywalker had gone above and beyond the call of duty more often than he was comfortable to count, from the Battle of Geonosis right to the rescue of the Chancellor. Yet Windu was still adverse to Yoda's implied suggestion. It amounted to rewarding Skywalker for his breach of the code, and that was something that Windu could not, would not do.

At the same time he could not just dismiss what Yoda had said. Not only because the green Jedi was by far the oldest and experienced member of the Council but also because there was a core of truth in what he had said. As much as he hated to admit that. What was more, a part of Windu was looking forward to finding out what it would be like if the most powerful Jedi in recent years had not only one, but two younglings.

"So what do you suggest we do?"

"This I suggest..."

Pain was everywhere, and he felt how he was slowly dying. Luke desperately tried to help him into the shuttle, but he knew that he wouldn't make it. Around them everything was falling to pieces, and he knew that the Second Death Star was not long for this world. He would die, but at least he had finally done the right thing, the thing he should have done all those years ago. In the hangar chaos reigned as groups of Stormtroopers and normal crew tried to get away somehow, to somewhere. He collapsed on the ramp of the shuttle, knowing that he would never move again. Luke was dragged down with him, and both of them tried to catch their breath. "Luke... help me take this mask off..." he said haltingly, desperate for his last wish.

"But you'll die..." Luke seemed so eager for him to live...

"Nothing... can stop that now."

Breathe.

"Just for once..." Breathe. "let me look on you..." Breathe... "with my own eyes..."Luke nodded slowly and began to remove the mask that had so long been the bane of his existence. When the inlay was removed, he managed a small smile as he looked on his son. But for his eyes and hair, there was so much of his mother in him... Breathe.

"Now.." Breathe. "Go, my son.." Breathe. "Leave me..." Breathe.Luke shook his head, unwilling to accept the situation. "No, you're coming with me. I've got to save you."Breathe.

"You.." Breathe. "already..." Breathe. "have, Luke." Breathe. "You were right." Breathe. "You were right about me." Breathe. His vision began to fade, and in the far distance of the Force he could hear her voice calling. She was waiting for him. "Tell your sister.." Breathe. "You were right."He began to fade away and closed his eyes. He could barely hear Luke talk. "Father... I won't leave you!"As Luke lowered him down on the ramp, he could hear her voice and he sent his own out into the Force.

'I am coming, Angel!'Blackness.

Anakin jerked awake on the couch, and beside him, Padmé sat on her chair.

"You never sleep in the middle of the day, and you didn't have a nightmare." she said with a smile.

"I told you Yoda can be exhausting."

Upon returning home four hours ago, he had given her a quick rundown of what he had talked with Yoda about, and it had taken him and Ahsoka everything to keep her from worrying herself into a frenzy. She still wasn't completely calm, he could see it on her face.

"Angel." he said, "Whatever happens to us, we will be together and with the twins, I promise you."

"I know." Padmé leaned over and placed her hand on his cheek with a smile.

"Oh Angel."

Anakin took and kissed her hand.

"So, what did you dream?" she asked.

"I don't know if it even was a dream. It certainly wasn't a nightmare, but what I saw there could be one. But what I felt is... oddly, mostly a sense of peace. I was.. not in good shape, but I..."

He searched for words that wouldn't worry her. "I felt a sense of peace, like I had finally done the right thing after a very long time. I felt... happy, oddly enough. I felt..."

He trailed off as he remembered something else he had sensed.

"Force... I need to speak to Master Yoda. Now."

He jumped to his feet, and threw on some clothes. "When I'm gone, lock the door, and let no one in except for me or Obi Wan, clear?"

Anakin was speaking in his General's persona, and Padmé knew him well enough to know that he didn't do this lightly.

"What is it, Anie?"

Ahsoka had noticed the ruckus and come into the living area from her guest room. Anakin turned to her. "Snips, I trust you will do your best to protect her?"

"Of course, Skyguy." she said with a nod and patted her blaster. "What's going on?"

Anakin sighed. "I'm not sure. I only know that I have a very bad feeling about this. Something is going on, and something very bad will happen, and soon."

"How do you know?"

"I wouldn't call it a disturbance in the force.. Angel, remember when..." he sighed. "Remember when we went to Tatooine just before Geonosis? It's not quite that bad, but the same sense of dread, worry and death.."

Padmé's eyes widened, and she nodded. "Go, and quickly."

She tossed him the access card to his speeder. "And hurry."

Anakin almost jumped through the door without a further word, leaving the Senator and Ahsoka behind. "What's up with him and Tatooine?" his former Padawan asked. Padmé only shook her head, a single tear running down her face as she held her belly and felt her children move.

Anakin meanwhile rushed to the landing platform, for once not caring who saw him. His speeder was parked where he'd left it, and seconds later he was racing towards the temple at a speed that was reckless even for him. He didn't notice the surveillance droid filming him as he left.

Luckily air traffic was light for this time of the day and he reached the Temple a short time afterwards. He ignored the indignant voices around him as he ran towards the staircase that led up to the Council Chambers. Shortly before reaching them however, he realized that the Council might not be in session, so he stopped, trying to decide what to do.

"Anakin, what are you doing here?"

It was Obi Wan. "Master, where is Master Yoda?"

"In his quarter..."

Before Obi Wan had ended his sentence, Anakin had taken off down the corridor, and his old Master decided to follow.

"Anakin, what is going on?"

"Master, those dreams have been placed in my head by Dark Side user, probably the Sith! "

Obi Wan didn't even flinch. "How do you know?"

"When we left for Corellia," he said, dodging his way around a few Younglings on their way to the cafeteria from class, "those dreams were about her death, I didn't have any when we were off Coruscant for a while. When we returned, they were about.."

Anakin shook his head. "They were premonitions again, but of even farther in the future. I'm convinced that... Master, I am convinced that this is what will happen if she dies! That presence was in all my dreams, I know that now. Before I just didn't know to look for it."

"What will happen, Anakin?"

They reached the turbolift to the area where the Masters had their quarters. "Master, the Republic would fall. The Order would fall."

They stepped in. "Obi Wan... I would fall."

Obi Wan couldn't think of anything to say. Instead he just stared at his old Padawan who wore a worried expression on his face he hadn't seen since they had left Coruscant for the first time after returning from Geonosis.

"Force, Anakin..."

"No, don't worry about that, Master. Now that I know, I will not fall prey to that... thing."

"You know who the Sith is, Anakin, do you?" Obi Wan had formulated it as a question, though it wasn't really one. Anakin tried to hide it from him, and there still was some uncertainty there in the bond, but it was obvious.

"I can't be sure yet, or not sure enough at least, not about something like this. I need Master Yoda's advice before I decide what to do."

The lift halted, and Anakin was running down the corridor, Obi Wan right behind.

"This time, this time I died, and Luke was there. My son. But I also sensed a presence in my mind, before the dream and slightly afterwards. I have sensed this presence often enough."

"And only a Force user can send you emotions like that, a Dark Sider."

"Yes, Master. And if it is who I think it is, then he is the most powerful deceiver in history. And a Sith. He managed to hide right in front of us."

"Who then is it, hmm?"

Anakin scrambled to a halt. He had almost fallen over the small Jedi Master. "Master Yoda, thank the Force you haven't left for Kashyyk yet."

"Who is it, Anakin?"

"Chancellor Palpatine."

"WHAT?"

Obi Wan wasn't prone to bursts of emotions, but this was certainly not a normal situation.

"Anakin, are you aware how preposterous that sounds?"

"Certain your former Padawan is certain, I am sure. Sense it makes. In a perfect position he would be to direct both sides."

"He was the one who wanted me to kill Dooku. He was the one who pushed for the vote against Valorum, he was the one who always told me I was right when I complained about the Order or the Council." Anakin rattled off things that did not quite add up about Chancellor Palpatine as they came to him. "And when we 'liberated' him from Grievous, he was awfully bendy for a man his age."

Obi Wan couldn't help a short smile at Anakin's choice of words.

"Force..." Anakin said, and dropped his head. "He's been using ME this entire time."

He looked up and stared in the distance, down the corridor.

"No more. If not for me, then for my family."

With that he almost took off down the corridor.

"Anakin! Wait! What are you doing?"

"Finding out if I'm right!" he said, "He once offered me to come to him if I needed help, and I just might take him up on that offer."

Obi Wan was about try and stop him when Yoda intervened.

"Right, young Skywalker is. Find out we must if true his suspicion is before we act. An emergency meeting of the Council I will convene. Come with me, you will, Obi Wan. Critical, time is."

Anakin was gone before Obi Wan had turned around.

"Force, I hope he knows what he's doing. If he tips him off..."

"Escalate quickly, this will."

The Chancellor of the Rebublic/Sith Lord didn't know what to think at first when Anakin Skywalker burst into his office. True, his future apprentice knew that he had permission to do so whenever Palpatine was present, but he rarely made use of that lately, though of course he knew why.

Even though Palpatine was fairly certain why Skywalker had come, it was still odd, since it wasn't exactly under the circumstances he had wanted. He had intended to invite him to the next performance of the Mon-Cal Opera tonight, but it seemed that his efforts to influence the young one had borne fruit so well that the opportunity had arisen already.

And yet something was off. Of course, he had expected the aura of worry and despair that came off Skywalker, in fact he needed it for his plans, but the young man's mind was closed, and Palpatine was unsure why. Normally he only closed of those parts concerning his wife, but right now he was totally unreadable. Well, maybe it was just because he was unsure how much to reveal.

"Chancellor." Skywalker said with a respectful nod.

"Have a seat, young Skywalker." came Palpatine's reply.

"Yes, Sir."

Once seated in the splendour that was the visitor's chair, he sighed. "Chancellor, you told me once that I could always come to you if I needed help.."

Palpatine suppressed a grin. Instead he made a show of looking concerned. "Of course, young man."

"Sir, I've been... having dreams. Those... close to me suffer, they die."

"Have you talked to someone about it?"

Anakin shrugged. "My master, and the Council.." he spat the last word, "they say that dreams pass with time. That's not the first time I heard that one.

Palpatine knew about Skywalker's mother. Back then everything had worked out perfectly, and it looked as if it would do so now as well.

"They say that the Force will right itself." Anakin snorted and shook his head. "First they don't let me on the Council, then they dismiss my fears... Sometimes I wish that I was still on Tatooine."

The young Jedi let all his fears and frustrations flow into his existence, just as Palpatine hoped he would. Yes, the young one was ready for the first stage. No sense in revealing too much, but a few chosen words...

"The Jedi were never the most forthcoming, my young friend. They have always had an agenda of their own. Like when they sent Master Fisto instead of you to apprehend Grievous. Not to send their best Knight shows me that the Council has... problems and is maybe not the best to lead the Order."

"If they were, I would have been appointed Master long ago."

"Almost certainly."

Palpatine fell silent and watched the young Jedi for a few minutes. Yes, he was genuinely distraught and angry at the same time.

"Anakin..."

The so spoken to looked up at the use of his first name and looked into the Chancellor's eyes.

"Anakin, I think I can.. no, I must tell you that information has come to my attention, the Order is plotting to overthrow the Republic."

"Why? How?" Skywalker asked, evidently very, very surprised.

"I found out because they tried to place listening devices in this very office, aided by traitors in the Senate. Surely, you sensed it?"

"Hah. They hide themselves when I am near, they do not trust me. Nor does anyone in the Senate. The Jedi must have told them about me."

"Of course." Palpatine replied, "But the Jedi are like any other political force, they have power and fear that once the war is over, they will loose it. That is why they refused you the Mastery, and why they send someone clearly inferior to you to apprehend Grievous."

What Palpatine didn't say of course that his warning to the General had allowed him to ambush and easily kill Fisto.

"Are you sure? The Jedi only use their powers for good, for peace."

"And who taught you that, young Skywalker?"

Nothing more was said for a for almost a quarter of an hour, and Skywalker looked out of the window at the traffic with a frown on his face. Yes, the young man was tempted indeed.

"In the end there is not much difference between any group of Force users, Anakin. Be they Jedi or Sith, they both use their gift to further their own power. All that differs are the methods and the veneer of selflessness the Order has you put on. It reminds me of the tragedy of Darth Plagueis The Wise."

He related the story, carefully leaving out that it had been himself who had killed his old Master, in strict accordance with the ways of the Sith.

"Can this healing power be learned?"

"Not from a Jedi."

"I see."

Skywalker rose to his feet. "You have helped me much, Chancellor. Thank you."

"My door is always open for you, my friend."

With a nod, Skywalker turned to leave. He stepped through the doors, and just as they closed, Palpatine sensed a flash of emotion from him. A mixture of pride in his accomplisments, humour and...triumph?

Skywalker had used him! Betrayed him! He had never genuinely sought his help!

Palpatine sat for a long, long time and only stared at the doors, fuming with anger.

But how was that possible?

Sidious dropped any vestiges of Chancellor Palpatine.

It didn't really matter how Skywalker had discovered his true identity, or how he had managed to fool him. Sidious was tempted to have him arrested on the spot, but he doubted that the comic opera senate guard could be able to deal with a Jedi. No, there was only one thing left to do. It was too early. Skywalker was probably already back at the temple before anything substantial happened in the Temple district, but that could not be helped.

What Sidious was really furious about was that he would now have to activate his backup plan, since clearly, Skywalker would not be his apprentice just yet. He would try to turn him again in the future. No, he would turn him, but right now there was only one thing left to do.

He reached over to his com panel and pressed a certain combination of controls. A channel that had only reason to exist was opened, and Sidious spoke with a calm collected voice that betrayed no emotion:

"Execute Order 66."

tbc

So there we are. In the next thirty-six hours (instory) a lot will happen.

As for the dream, I watched that scene on Youtube, and by god, James Earl Jones still rules this role.

The bit with Palps being bendy, I got that from I think a review vid I watched a few months ago.

And yes, here Anakin outed himself as a very good actor. Any non-force user would have been fooled.