Artoo Detoo came rushing up the hall and spun into the medical ward. Artoo squeaked to a halt, rocking and whistling hysterically.

"Slow down, Artoo." Luke told the excited robot.

The droid held out the datapad in it's pincer. Luke took it and read the message. "Nothing on Obi-Wan being captured or killed."

Both Anakin and Luke were relieved at that, but also concerned.

Artoo whistled excitedly.

"So Artoo used the codes you gave him to …" Luke turned to stare at the droid. "He connected through the holonet relays and bounced the signal around to the nearest Imperial base and used it to check Imperial communications and activity in the sector Obi-Wan went to. And he got a hit."

Artoo activated his holo viewer. A planet with two moons appeared, and hovering some distance between that planet and the next one, further out were three star destroyers and two interdictor cruisers.

"Hmm." Anakin sat up. "Where in this is Obi-Wan? That's pretty far out."

"The planet with the two moons is where he was heading." Doubts forgotten, Luke studied the data. "Looks like this fleet might've gotten in his way."

Artoo whistled, the holo view reversed and he replayed a scene. A small ship came out at a distance, not quite in range of the destroyers. They started shooting immediately. The ship was nicked and spun, seemingly out of control toward the planet. Tie fighters pursued. A massive explostion consumed the ship.

Both Skywalkers sucked in a breath.

Artoo pulled up data he'd grabbed from the fighters. He replayed it.

Anakin leaned forward intently. His eyes narrowed. He could sense Luke's muffled fear beside him. Suddenly he smiled. "He faked it."

"What? Are you sure?"

"Absolutely." He nodded. "See that explosion? He dumped spare parts and explosives and set them up like he'd been fatally destroyed. Artoo, did they follow up?"

Artoo whistled, domed head shaking as he pulled up the logs.

"The commander ordered them not to follow through." Luke said slowly. "Why would they do that?"

"Incompetence … or impatience to get on with a more important mission."

"I guess that's a good sign. If they knew who he was they'd think he was the more important mission." It flickered into his mind that a more important mission might mean trouble, but for now, he had enough to worry about.

Artoo grumbled. He hadn't dumped the whole Imperial database, just what he thought they needed now.

"You did great Artoo." Anakin said. "We should be careful with those connections. Too many and somebody may tumble that someone with high clearance is alive and in the wrong hands. From a certain point of view that is."

Luke stared at the hologram. "I still feel like he's in danger."

"I do too. But I don't really trust my feelings right now."

"He's trapped there, at the very least. With those fighters so close."

"Yes. He is."

Anakin studied Luke. "Care to meditate on it? Sort out whether it's our concern or the Force talking?"

"Lets."

The meditation brought a surprise.

"Anakin."

His eyes went wide with surprise.

"Qui-Gon?"

Luke opened his eyes, frowning. Staring at the glowing blue form, his jaw dropped and he blinked rapidly. "What?"

"My name is Qui-Gon Jinn." The ghostly spirit smiled. "And I have waited for this day for a long time."

"Oh, Qui-Gon." Anakin whispered, guilt choking him. After all the man had done for him, he'd betrayed and dishonored him. He'd wanted to be like Qui-Gon more than anything.

The Jedi Master held a hand up. "You have done your duty. You have stopped the Emperor at great cost to yourself. Now it's time to begin again."

Anakin licked very dry lips. "What can I do Qui-Gon? I would undo so much if I could."

"I know. As do the others." Qui-Gon smiled. "But the past cannot be changed. Right now, there are some still living that could use your help."

"Obi-Wan?" Luke asked.

"Yes, Luke. Obi-Wan. You should both go."

"Why do I feel like you know me but I don't know you." Luke was bewildered at this strange spirit knowing his name.

"I have watched you, your entire life. Just as I watched your Father from the moment we met." He turned back to Anakin.

"You still have much to learn, Anakin. But keep your focus on the light. You will not have to learn alone."

"Thank you." Anakin whispered as the jedi master faded away.

They collected the medical supplies the doctor recommended. It made sense to take not only what was recommended for Anakin, but also emergency supplies.

"Now. Let's see if I can requisition your shuttle again."

"I sure hope so. We need the cloak."

"I might've neglected to mention that to anyone. So there's a chance. Artoo, how about seeing if we can requisition a couple of those speeder bikes we caught? Be discreet."

The small droid whistled and hurried off.

Luke marched up to the deck officer. "I need to take that shuttle back out."

The officer looked uncertainly at a datapad. "There aren't any missions scheduled for it."

"Consider it scheduled now."

"When do you need to take off?"

"Right now if possible."

Anakin headed for the shuttle. He felt odd and exposed. On the one hand, it was wonderful to blend in by looking so normal. He just wore standard, off duty pilot fatigues. He had a cloak folded over one arm. On the other hand, if they realized who he was, or rather, who he'd been for the last twenty some years, he was in serious trouble. He had no idea how he'd react, or for that matter how he should react. Luke might well defend him, which would get him in trouble with his friends. The place felt so familiar though. The sounds of a hanger, smells of grease and lubricants and soldering parts, the pilots and astromechs checking out vehicles slowly brought a slight smile to his face. No matter which side they were on, ships and their pilots all shared a common interest.

Even as he thought this, he entered the cockpit and stared out the window and recognized a familiar shape. The Millenium Falcon, with Solo, Chewbacca and Calrissian all motioning and talking. He noticed it was missing the sensor dish. He bet Solo was less than happy about that. Solo looked toward the shuttle and called out something.

Artoo was already on board and inputting the coordinates. He'd succeeded in getting the speeder bikes and they were tucked into the cargo area. Anakin took the copilot seat and started the preflight check. Luke practically ran in and sank into the pilot's seat. "We're good to go."

"Uh huh." Anakin looked at him dubiously. "Luke, I can't hide forever. I can't live the lie. Sooner or later …"

"Later." Luke said firmly. "After we find Obi-Wan." He quickly activated the repulsors and lifted off. "And we need to get out of here. Han just saw me and I pretended I didn't hear him. If I explain where were going, they'll want to explain who I'm going with." He spared his father a worried glance and Anakin knew the thought had occurred to him that it had to come out eventually. "Lots of people have defected from the Empire. You killed the Emperor to save me. It'll make a difference. I just need some time to figure out how to explain it."

"If you say so." Anakin thought Luke a bit over optimistic on the subject. He knew he was trying to convince himself as much as Anakin. Some things no explanation could cover.

"So who is this Qui-Gon Jinn?" Luke changed the subject as they headed for the edge of the fleet.

"Obi-Wan didn't mention him?"

"No."

"He was Obi-Wan's master. He was also the Jedi who found me and took me to the Jedi in the first place. He was my hero. I wanted to be like him more than anything." He paused. "He was killed in battle before I was accepted into the Order. His last wish was for Obi-Wan to train me." Anakin paused. "I'm glad you saw him too. For a second there I though I was hallucinating."

"Oh! I thought Yoda trained Obi-Wan. He sent me to him for awhile."

"Yoda's alive?" Anakin cocked his head slowly. There was something in Luke's voice ...

Luke shook his head sadly. "He died last time I went to see him. He was sick. He said he was nine hundred years old."

"Yoda trained everyone at one point or another. He was the grand master of the Jedi Order." Anakin paused staring out at stars as they leaped to hyperspace. "Somehow it felt like he'd be around forever. Hard to picture old age taking him out."

Luke sighed. "He was ready to go. He was tired. He said as much."

"Yeah. He had a right to be."

Luke gave him a sidelong glance at the uncertainty in his voice. "Did he ever train you?"

"Oh, I had the basic stuff with him. Basic lightsaber classes when I was a kid." Anakin blinked rapidly. "I had a hard time identifying with him though. His whole Jedi "must remain unattached" angle … I mean, it's part of the code, but it drove me crazy. Like he was always judging me. He didn't want to let me train. And he didn't want Obi-Wan to train me. That hurt." It occurred to him how whiny he sounded. He hastened to add, "I know it wasn't personal. But, well, I was only a kid and stuff like that leaves an impression ..."

Luke looked puzzled. "Why didn't he want to train you?"

Anakin laughed unexpectedly. "He said I was too old. At nine by the way."

Luke looked bewildered for a moment, then his expression cleared. "So that's why he was so doubtful about training me!" Luke shook his head. "If he thought you were too young it's a wonder he agreed to train me at all!"

"Desperation may have had to do with it in your case. He felt it was dangerous to train me." Anakin scowled. "I wish I hadn't proved him right."

"He couldn't have known you'd fall. Even he said the future is always in motion."

Anakin nodded. "You're right. I could've made a different choice. He told me to let go of what I feared to lose. I took that to mean I had to give up your mother. Of course, he didn't actually know about your mother. But if I'd just asked for help instead of holding on to the idea I had to do it on my own, instead of trusting Palpatine, things might've been very different.

Luke studied him cautiously. "Why … didn't he know about my mother?" He had a feeling it was important.

"He didn't tell you?!" Anakin's expression was almost comical, with wide eyes and jaw hanging open.

Luke shook his head.

Anakin laughed, a disturbed, distressed sound. "Attachment was forbidden. Children taken into the order were too young to remember his parents. Obi-Wan doesn't remember his. And marriage was forbidden." He looked up at Luke. "We had to hide it. Even Obi-Wan didn't know."

Luke's eyes were wide and his mouth hung open. "You couldn't hide … me … us."

Anakin shook his head. "I came back from the front lines after months and just like that she told me she was pregnant."

Luke stared at him. "What would they have done if they knew?"

"Expel me from the order."

"Oh." Luke's voice came out in a whispered croak.

"Unless I left first. I planned too. I was tired of the lie." Anakin's eyes lit into his. "And I wanted to be with my family."

Luke swallowed hard. "What was her name?"

"Padmé. Padmé Naberrie Amidala. We were married right after the battle of Geonosis and the outbreak of the Clone Wars. I was still Obi-Wan's apprentice at the time." Memories threatened to drown him. Love, joy, camaraderie and romance battled against the horror of loss and guilt and shame.

They fell into silence then, Luke sensing the internal battle and leaving him to deal with it. He had his own thoughts to ponder with the new information his father had just given him about his mother and the old Jedi order.

They both had a lot to contemplate.

to be continued