Council meetings were always a chore, and Anakin wasn't even a Council Member!
Not yet at least. If he had anything to say about it, one day he would be!
Still, as much as he wanted it, he didn't envy the Council members too much. Anyone who had to be stuck in meetings all day long where nothing happened and nothing was resolved had a bad job! Anakin would much prefer to be out in the field, solving problems and making the galaxy a safer place for those that lived in it. How Obi-Wan, or even Kit Fisto found the patience to sit in a small room and talk to Master Windu all day was beyond him!
Still, Council meetings were important, and he had obviously been summoned for a particular reason. The question was what was the reason?
"Thank you for coming, Knight Skywalker. We have much to discuss." The ever elegant voice of Plo Koon echoed throughout the Council chamber, drawing Anakin's attention over to the Kel Dor. Anakin liked Plo Koon. He was a reasonable man, and one hell of a pilot in difficult situations. Out of all of the Council Members, Obi-Wan aside, Anakin felt that if he ever had a problem he could talk to Plo Koon about it.
It also helped that, unlike the vast majority of the Council, Plo Koon had fully supported Ahsoka during her hoax of a trial. Anakin would never forget that, and fully intended to repay the Jedi Master one day for his loyalty.
"I am honored to be called upon as always Master Plo. How may I serve the Council?" Anakin responded, bowing to one of the few Council members he respected in full.
"I believe Master Yoda has the full details of your assignment Skywalker." Plo Koon spoke again, gesturing over to the diminutive green Jedi Grandmaster, who for some reason appeared not to be focusing on the discussion at hand, but instead at something else.
The Jedi Master brought one clawed hand to his forehead, resting it gently above his brow, his eyes clenched shut in what seemed like pain. Through the Force Anakin felt a slight change in the Jedi Master's Force signature, a pulse of pain radiating out from Yoda briefly before it vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
"Master Yoda? Are you ok?" Windu's voice was oddly soft, something Anakin had rarely ever heard from him. Windu always seemed a stern man, driven by his desire to do good to an almost zealous extent. In a way, Anakin supposed that was what made Windu a good Jedi. He was fully committed to the cause.
And that was likely why the Jedi Master didn't trust Anakin as well. To someone of Windu's devotion, Anakin must have seemed like the least committed Jedi in the Order!
"Fine, I am. Discuss important matters with you, we must Skywalker." Yoda replied, brushing off Windu's concern with a wave of his clawed hand, his eyes settling on Anakin's face, a small smile coming to his lips.
"What do you need of me Master Yoda?" Anakin said, bowing to the Jedi Master in a sign of respect. He never really knew what to make of Yoda. Half the time he was a decent being, friendly and compassionate, willing to help everyone for nothing in return.
And then other times he seemed so cold, so unapproachable, so old. Could Anakin truly trust the Grandmaster with anything?
"Increased, Separatist activity has in recent weeks. Rumours there are, of a planned attack on Coruscant. Wish you to investigate these rumours and monitor Separatist fleet movements, we do." Yoda spoke, his backward speech ever present. After nearly two decades of listening to the Jedi Master, Anakin had a strong grasp of exactly what he meant, even with his broken speech patterns.
Still, that didn't mean he liked his new mission. Recon and surveillance was not something he specialised in, so why was the Council sending him on such a mission? Surely that was something better suited for Obi-Wan?
Despite his inward protest however, Anakin knew better than to argue with the Council over something so trivial. If they were trusting him with this mission, then he would complete it.
And perhaps he'd finally be able to earn some respect from them in the process.
With reluctance, Anakin nodded his acceptance to Master Yoda, who smiled back in response, humour in his eyes, as if he could tell that Anakin was frustrated with the mission, even if he had accepted it.
"Excellent. Knew we could trust you, I did, Skywalker. Not the most patient you are, but…"
The Jedi Master stopped mid sentence, his facial expression falling suddenly, before a clawed hand rose back up to his forehead and began to rub it once more. A groan escaped Yoda in the process, and Anakin could have sworn he saw Yoda's eyes very nearly roll back into his head.
"Master?" Anakin said, concern building up inside him suddenly. Something wasn't right.
Another groan echoed across the Council Chamber suddenly, drawing Anakin's attention over to its origin.
Kit Fisto sat in his chair, his own head in his hands, fingers interlocked with the vast array of tentacles that protruded from his head.
"Master Fisto?" Anakin spoke again, his concern doubling. Something was seriously wrong!
"Anakin…" The voice of Obi-Wan drew Anakin's attention this time, his body spinning round to face his former Master, who too was now clutching his head, a look of agony on his face.
Wasting no time, Anakin rushed over to Obi-Wan's chair, grasping hold of his brother in everything but blood, reaching out through the Force at the same time. Around them the other Council Members all began to groan as well, their hands coming to their heads, pain etched upon their faces.
Behind him, Anakin was aware of the suddenly collapsing form of Shaak Ti, who was only narrowly caught by Fisto, who too seemed to succumb suddenly to the phantom pain.
Turning his attention from Obi-Wan briefly, Anakin was able to witness the Thisspiasian Council Member Oppo Rancisis fall to the floor as well, his snake-like body curling up into a tight clench, before his eyes closed too.
Panic overtook Anakin! What was going on?! Was the Temple under attack by some malignant force?! Why could he not feel the agony that was plaguing the others in the room?!
Turning his attention back to Obi-Wan, and solely Obi-Wan, Anakin felt a rush of dread flood his body. Obi-Wan's normally blue eyes had taken on a bloodshot hue, the whites of his eyes stained with veiny red markings. Sweat began to pour down his face, his ginger beard glistening in the process.
Reaching through their bond, Anakin tried to offer comfort, tried to help his Master in any way he could, but instead found himself blocked by something! What it was he didn't know, but he'd be damned if he was going to let it take Obi-Wan from him.
"Obi-Wan! Obi-Wan can you hear me?" Anakin spoke clearly, refraining from shouting despite his panicked state.
"Anak… Ana.. Anakin." Obi-Wan tried to speak, his words coming out slow and slurred as pain overtook him, before he too slumped over into Anakin's arms, his eyes closed, but his face still holding a visage of agony.
For a brief dire moment, Anakin thought Obi-Wan was dead! It wouldn't have been the first time, but this time he doubted it was part of a mission, not if whatever had affected Obi-Wan had also affected the rest of the Council simultaneously.
Luckily however, the moment passed when he saw that Obi-Wan was still breathing, despite his sudden comatose state.
Knowing there was little he could do at the moment, Anakin gently moved Obi-Wan's unconscious form back into his Council chair, resting him comfortably in it before standing and turning around to look at the rest of the Council.
He had a horrible feeling that he knew what was coming, but the sight of the entirety of the Jedi Council laying on the floor in various heaps of limbs was still a nasty sight to see. A group of individuals he thought so powerful had been rendered useless by some mysterious force that Anakin didn't understand.
And then Anakin saw he wasn't alone. Not every Council Member had fallen prey to whatever the rest had. One of them was still standing like he was, and currently crouched over Master Yoda's prone form, confusion and shock rushing off him through the Force.
Sighing to himself, Anakin knew that he had no choice but to work with the only unaffected Council Member to solve this mystery, even if said Council Member was the one who hated him most of all.
It took the two of them several minutes to move around the room and check on every other Council Member. Thankfully, each and every one of them was still alive, despite being out for the count.
Grasping hold of Plo Koon's unconscious form, Anakin helped to support the weight of the Kel Dor as he and the only other operational Council Member moved him back to his chair from where he had fallen forward onto the floor. Thankfully Plo's mask had been undamaged. If it had been then things would have ended very badly for the man who had originally found Ahsoka.
Placing Plo back into his chair, Anakin rose back to his full height, standing beside his unexpected companion as they both glanced around the quiet Council Chambers.
"What could have done this?" Anakin voiced his thoughts aloud, not expecting any answers at this point.
"Unknown." The voice of Mace Windu came in response as the Jedi Master too glanced around the room, his brow lowered with a look of near anger on his face.
Being stuck with Windu was not always a good thing in Anakin's mind. What made it worse was that the Jedi Master had no more clue as to what had transpired as a lowly Knight like Anakin had. They really would have to work together to figure this one out!
Shifting his thoughts away from Windu's presence to the problem at hand, Anaki began to run ideas through his head. Whatever had attacked the Council Members and caused this incident had worked fast! During his attempt to connect with Obi-Wan, Anakin had felt what seemed like a mental block of some kind, almost as if the Force wasn't with Obi-Wan any more.
A worrying idea came to his head suddenly. Ahsoka had made mention of something she had uncovered recently. A Separatist bioweapon that could neutralize the Force in those who possessed its power. What if this was that!
Anakin voiced the idea aloud to Windu, who looked skeptical for a few moments before turning to face his own Council chair. Reaching a hand out, the Jedi Master manipulated the Force to levitate the chair briefly, before returning it to it's spot, the only vacant chair in the room.
"I do not believe this is the work of the weapon Tano informed us of. I am still connected to the Force, and I can feel your connection too. This is something else." Windu replied, his expression grim as he turned to face Anakin.
"But why aren't we affected by it? All the other Council Members succumbed to it, even Yoda! Why haven't we been affected?" Anakin inquired, glancing over at Obi-Wan really wishing his former Master was conscious right now. He'd have all the answers already… somehow.
"Perhaps the Force has a sick sense of humour after all. It must do if it thought pairing us up was a wise decision."
To say Anakin was surprised at the humorous quip that escaped from Windu's mouth would be a monumental understatement. Never in a million years did he ever think he'd hear Mace Windu tell a joke!
Suffice to say Anakin was not going to let an opportunity like this pass him by.
"I'm inclined to agree Master, yet I have full faith in our abilities to resolve this problem. I mean, with the two of us working together, how can we fail?"
Much to Anakin's surprise, there was no hostile response from Windu. Anakin had half expected a roll of the eyes, or a scoff, or something along those lines.
Instead, Windu made a small hum under his breath, before turning towards the doors that led out of the Council Chamber and towards the turbolift.
"We should report this to the healers immediately. Perhaps they will be able to ascertain the root of the problem."
"Good idea." Anakin replied, moving into formation with Windu as the two left the unconscious Council Members behind. Anakin was worried, but he knew that right now there was nothing he could do to help Obi-Wan and the rest of the Council. They had to find a solution first, and the Council Chambers was the safest place in the Temple.
Stepping into the turbolift, Anakin turned his head to Windu and spoke again.
"So I take it my mission has been postponed?"
Once again, much to Anakin's surprise, Windu responded with a rare chuckle.
"So it seems Anakin. So it seems."
Windu rarely ever called Anakin by his first name. In a way it almost felt like a privilege, as if he was finally being recognized as a person!
"Not gonna lie Master. Kind of glad. That mission sounded really boring!"
This time Windu had no reaction, though through the Force Anakin could feel the Jedi Master's discomfort at the situation. He was no more pleased than Anakin was, despite his momentary jesting. Still, he was still willing to work with Anakin, despite the tension that existed between them.
The remainder of the journey down the turbolift was full of quiet contemplation. Anakin could come up with no further answers of what had happened in the Council Chambers, though he had a really bad feeling about this!
What if it wasn't just the Council Members that had been affected? What if the rest of the Temple had been as well?
A dark sense of dread and foreboding filled him as the turbolift reached the bottom of the shaft and the door opened.
As it opened, he saw what he was dreaded most.
The main atrium of the Temple, usually so alive with activity, was silent. Strewn around the room were near to a hundred collapsed bodies of Jedi, each of which looked to be in a similar state to the Council Members.
Stepping out of the elevator, and approaching the prone form of a ginger haired youngling, Anakin saw that he, like the Council Members, was still breathing. Anakin was grateful for that at least.
"It would appear that this malignant force extends beyond the Council Chambers," Windu spoke from behind Anakin, eyes surveying the bodies around the atrium, his signature in the Force on edge.
Standing up from where he had been crouched, Anakin followed Windu's gaze to another fallen form, this one draped in the familiar armour and robes of a Jedi Temple Guard.
"Not even the Temple Guards are conscious. What is this?" Anakin questioned, glancing at Windu again, looking for some kind of direction.
Windu however could not provide any. Like Anakin he was equally as lost.
"I do not know Skywalker. But if the Temple Guard is down then security for the Order has been compromised."
Windu's words were true. If there was no one to defend the Temple, then everyone inside of it, conscious or not, were at risk. Anakin and Windu could very well be the only people left awake in the entirety of the Temple! If they were to conduct whatever investigation they had to find the answer, they needed someone to guard the Temple and those inside of it whilst they did so.
Luckily for them all, Anakin had already formed a plan, one that resulted in him reaching for his communicator, connecting a call in the process.
His loyal Clone Captain did not take long to answer.
"General Skywalker? What can I do for you?"
Rex had been informed that they would likely have a new mission soon, and had thus already rounded up the 501st for deployment. Now however they would be deployed in a much different location.
"Rex, something has happened in the Temple. I'm not sure what, but so far everyone aside from myself and Master Windu has fallen unconscious. We've got no security over here. Can you get the 501st over here to provide some whilst Windu and I run an investigation?"
"Of course Sir. Consider it done!"
Rex cut the commlink seconds later, and Anakin was left with full faith that soon the 501st would descend upon the Temple to protect its residents.
With that issue resolved, Anakin turned back to Windu and spoke.
"So, Halls of Healing?"
Windu nodded in affirmation, before pivoting on his heel and leading the way, Anakin falling into place beside him.
The walk through the quiet halls of the Temple was eerie to say the least. Every hallway, every room, full of prone bodies of unconscious Jedi, all struck down by some mysterious force in under a minute. Whatever this was, it was clearly powerful. If Anakin had to guess, he put all the money he had on it being connected to the Sith… somehow.
Turning another hallway, Anakin heard Windu quietly gasp, before his feet carried him over to another pair of unconscious Jedi.
"Depa… Caleb…"
Windu's voice was despondent for a brief moment, an echo of despair flowing through the Force as he crouched near the silent forms of his former Padawan and her own apprentice. Like the others they were breathing still, but that clearly didn't bring Windu any comfort.
"It will be ok Master. We will find a way to reverse this." Anakin spoke, trying to offer some semblance of hope to Windu.
"Yes… we will." The Jedi Master responded, standing to his full height again and nodding at Anakin to follow, leaving Depa and Caleb behind in their slumber.
The unlikely duo barely made it down the hall they were in before their luck changed yet again.
"MASTER WINDU!"
The booming voice of a woman echoed from down the hallway, causing both Anakin and Windu to pivot on the spot as finally, someone else that was conscious appeared.
Resisting the urge to break into a wide smile at the fact that they were not the only one's still awake and functioning, Anakin observed this new arrival as she sprinted down the hall to them. She was a towering Dowutin woman who was dressed in heavy cream robes, whose footsteps shook the ground beneath her with every step she took. From outward appearance alone, she looked incredibly menacing. Luckily, Anakin knew better than to judge someone based on their appearance. His mother had taught him that.
Despite bounding towards them with significant speed, the Dowutin woman managed to slow herself before she barrelled into either of them, her towering form coming to a standstill directly in front of both Anakin and Windu, a smile on her face.
"Knight Tide? You aren't unconscious like the rest?" Windu spoke first, his tone grim at the sudden appearance of a Jedi he was clearly familiar with. Despite his expression, Anakin could tell that Windu was pleased to have found another person who was awake. Perhaps there were more of them too?
"No Master, I'm fine. Everyone else just seemed to collapse suddenly though! I've got no idea what happened. It was so sudden!" The Dowutin replied, slowly catching her breath back from where she had sprint to catch up to Anakin and Windu.
"We experienced a similar event. The entirety of the Jedi Council, save myself, have collapsed as well. We were on our way to the Halls of Healing to see if we could find someone to help." Windu replied, hands clasped behind his back, posture tall and in command. He was clearly trying to lead the trio in this confusing time. In a way, Anakin appreciated that someone had a plan, or at least seemed like they had one.
"The entire Council?! Holy kriff! I was teaching a group of younglings meditation when it happened! I don't know what is worse? Claws crossed that someone in the Halls of Healing is still awake too! We are really gonna need their help!" The Dowutin continued, the smile on her face evaporating and being replaced by a look of dread. Her signature in the Force was stormy, one part angry at the situation, another part resolved to find the solution. Anakin got the feeling that this woman would be vital to solving whatever conundrum had hit the Jedi Temple and its inhabitants.
"Yes. 'Claws crossed' indeed. Anakin Skywalker, this is Masana Tide. Masana, this is Anakin Skywalker." Windu replied, choosing that moment to introduce Anakin to their new companion.
Masana's eyes widened briefly in surprise at the mention of Anakin's name, no doubt reacting to the prophecy that all the Jedi seemed to have heard of that continued to plague Anakin throughout his career. Why couldn't people just see him as a normal being for once?
Shaking off his internal frustration with the supposed prophecy, Anakin instead offered a hand to the Dowutin woman in greeting, one that she took in her own large claw. Her grip was strong, yet oddly gentle at the same time. Anakin couldn't tell if Masana was purposely keeping her grip weak to avoid crushing Anakin's hand within her own or not, but either way it mattered little. Despite towering over both himself and Windu, Masana Tide seemed trustworthy.
Plus, she was a Jedi like him, and right now one of the apparent few Jedi still functioning in the Jedi Temple.
"Pleasure to meet you Skywalker. From what I've heard you sound like a fun guy. Can't wait to get into trouble with you."
Anakin couldn't help but laugh at the scowl that appeared on Windu's face as Masana spoke, a smirk coming to her face in the process as well. If first impressions were anything to go by, he and Masana would get along very well.
"I think we are already in enough trouble as it is Masana. Shall we make haste to the Halls of Healing?" Anakin replied, directing the question at Windu, who nodded his head and turned to lead the way once more, Anakin and Masana falling into step behind him.
The three continued to move through the endless halls of the Jedi Temple, passing by more and more unconscious but alive Jedi in the process. Every time they turned a corner, Anakin would count mentally just how many he had seen thus far. Hundreds, if not thousands of Jedi were in the Temple at any given time. Surely they couldn't be the only three still conscious?
Several moments later, the trio found their way to the Halls of Healing, and much of the hope Anakin had felt faded away instantly.
The medical staff, much like the rest of the Jedi throughout the Temple, lay prone on the floor, their patients also in a similar state. There was no one around to help them figure this out as they'd hoped. It looked like they were on their own.
That was until a figure emerged from a side room in the Halls of Healing, and Masana breathed a sigh of relief beside him at the sight of a fourth conscious person.
"Bil? Oh thank the Force! I was worried you had been struck down by whatever this was too!"
The individual, a grey humanoid figure with what looked like yellow tribal tattoos on his face smirked as he approached the trio.
"No such luck I'm afraid Masana. Guess you are stuck with me." The figure, Bil, said. Anakin could not discern what species he was, but right now Anakin didn't care. As long as he wasn't unconscious like the rest he could help them… hopefully.
"What are you doing in the Halls of Healing Knight Valen?" Windu said, brow raised in what looked like suspicion. But why was he suspicious? Did he not like this 'Bil' person…. or not trust him?
If that was the case, then Anakin might have just found someone he had something in common with!
"Looking for a healer Master Windu…. but everyone seems out of it. Only the non-Jedi staff are up, and they are completely stumped by whatever the kriff this is! I was trying to help since I'm a Jedi who isn't unconscious for some reason!" Bil replied, his tone exasperated by Windu's questioning, a look of annoyance on his face. Beside him, Anakin felt Masana stiffen in dread, as if expecting her friend to receive some sort of reprimand.
Oddly enough however, Windu's reply was simple.
"Good work Knight. We are going to need all the help we can get. Have you discovered anything yet?"
Bil's eyes widened briefly at the praise, before he turned and gestured to the trio to follow, leading them in a small room on the side of the medical ward. As they passed through the doorway, Anakin spotted two more individuals who were up and functioning, these ones dressed in a standard civilian garb rather than the well known Jedi robe. It was clear these two were simply Temple workers hired by the Jedi rather than Jedi themselves.
"So far the only thing I've been able to deduce is that whatever has happened only affects those that can use the Force. These two civilians for example are fine. The rest of the Jedi medical staff however have been rendered unconscious." Bil explained, nodding to the two civilians as they passed them, before heading through another doorway, one that led to a communication panel.
"Yeah, the same thing happened to the Council. They just dropped onto the floor." Anakin added, earning a look of surprise from Bil in the process at the mention of the Council members.
"But why are we immune to this?" Masana spoke next, offering the question that everyone else was thinking. Why were they immune to whatever this was?
"Not a clue… and so far I've got no leads into finding an answer about that, but I did have another idea." Bil replied, approaching the communications panel in the process and beginning to input a series of digits.
"And what is that Knight Valen?" Windu spoke next, coming to stand beside Bil as he watched the Jedi Knight work, leaving both Masana and Anakin to stand behind them. Anakin glanced up at the Dowutin woman's face, meeting her eyes in the process with an unspoken question.
The smirk that came to Masana's face was all the answer Anakin needed. Both she and Bil were no fans of Windu, and Windu was clearly no fan of either of them either. Suddenly the Jedi Temple felt a lot less lonely to Anakin. Perhaps there were people inside of it that he could get along with aside from Obi-Wan and Plo Koon.
"Well, if you just give me a second and… AH…. there we go!"
Bil's words were interrupted by a pair of holograms bursting into existence before them. Two dark skinned human women dressed in Jedi robes appeared before them, one with long braided hair flowing down the back of her neck, the other a telltale Padawan braid formed from the loose strands of hair.
Anakin didn't recognize either of the women, but Bil and Windu clearly did.
"Master Junda. Padawan Suduri. Is everything alright with the two of you?" Bil spoke first, barely keeping the desperation out of his voice.
The older of the two women, who Anakin assumed was Master Junda, nodded her head slowly, a confused expression on her face. The Padawan however was the first to reply verbally.
"Why wouldn't we be alright Knight Valen? Has something happened?"
"You could say that. Pretty much every Jedi in the Temple has fainted with no explanation. They are alive… but non responsive. I was trying to see if this was a localised incident or was affecting the Jedi as a whole," Bil explained, the panic that had been in his voice fading slightly at seeing more unaffected Jedi.
"Well we have not had anything like you describe happen here Knight Valen. Should we return to the Temple to assist?" Master Junda spoke this time, her tone concerned but determined. Her facial expression gave away what her voice did not however. Like them, she was clearly wondering what could do such a thing in the first place.
"No Master Junda. If you return you risk being affected by this. Remain where you are and inform as many Jedi as you can to stay away from the Temple in the meantime. Once we find a solution we will send out an all clear." Windu said, bowing his head to the Master and Padawan in the process, a gesture that was returned.
"Of course Master Windu. May the Force be with you."
And with that the holograms faded away as Bil turned around to face Anakin and Masana.
"Whatever this thing is, it only appears to be localised on the Jedi Temple. Any Jedi in other regions of the galaxy should be fine, as long as they stay away." Bil spoke, his reasoning becoming clear. He had called up Master Junda and her Padawan in hopes of finding out if this incident was galaxy wide. Luckily for them, it was not.
"That still doesn't explain why we are unaffected. I doubt it's because of our good looks after all. I mean… Skywalker is still awake!" Masana responded, winking at Anakin in the process to emphasize her joke at his expense. Anakin had to admit that the Dowutin had courage. She had only known him all of five minutes and she was already making jokes about him the way his former Padawan would have. Anakin could already see that if Masana ever met Ahsoka, they would get along like a house on fire!
Opening his mouth to respond, Anakin found himself interrupted by his communicator beeping insistently, signaling an incoming call.
"Skywalker here."
"General Skywalker? It's Commander Wolffe. Rex said I should call you! Got a serious problem here General."
It was unlike Wolffe to communicate with any Jedi that wasn't Plo Koon. Chances were that Rex had already informed Wolffe about what had happened, and likely Cody too.
"What's wrong Wolffe?" Anakin replied, forgetting to add the honorific of his title in the process. Hopefully the Commander would not mind.
"Rex told me what happened at the Temple, and me and the Wolfpack were on our way to help. But we found a Jedi sir. He's just lying in the streets of Coruscant. He's alive and breathing sir, but he won't respond to us. Shall we bring him to the Temple?"
"Yes Commander! Bring him in."
"Copy that General. See you soon."
Wolffe was the one to cut the line, leaving Anakin again with the Jedi that had not been affected by whatever had happened.
"So, perhaps it is more than just the Temple, but all of Coruscant itself?" Masana voiced, a hand coming up to scratch at the horns underneath her chin, a perplexed look on her face.
"Seems likely. Any Jedi or Force user on Coruscant could be affected by this. We need to act quickly to resolve this issue before anything happens to them." Windu continued, taking command of the situation as always.
But Anakin wasn't listening, not after what Windu had said to begin with.
There was a chance that every single Force user on Coruscant could be affected by this. A sense of dread flooded into Anakin. What if….
"Skywalker? What's wrong?" Masana's voice was barely registered by Anakin's mind, one that was now too worried about what might have happened to his friend.
Rather than explain in detail, Anakin turned and began to leave the room, fully intending on leaving the Temple to find out if she was ok.
"Knight Skywalker? Where are you going?" Windu's voice hit his mind this time, his tone annoyed, not that Anakin cared much.
Instead, the Jedi Knight offered only one word as an answer.
"Ahsoka!"
Author's thoughts
And so the next story arc begins. This is the arc I've been most excited to write for a long time now as it is very character driven and has more than a few surprising twists and appearances in it. Plus it also gives me some more time to flesh out some more characters, as well as finally write another arc that is mainly from Anakin's POV. All in all, this is gonna be a fun one... hopefully (unless I mess it up like I have a tendency to do. That would be just my luck wouldn't it?)
So anyways, this chapter jumps right into the thick of it, and hopefully it sets up a compelling mystery for you all to analyse. Something bad has happened... the question is what... and why isn't everyone effected?
Teaming Anakin up with Windu was great fun due to their history and how they interact with each other. Both of them distrust the other, but they also have a begrudging respect and common interests in saving the Order. Thus, we get perhaps the most unorthodox pair up since Windu and Jar Jar. XD
As for the other character seen in this chapter... I'm sure most of you will know who they are... or who they go on to become in canon, but I won't directly spoil it for anyone who doesn't know. Lets just say that I've been having great fun writing Masana Tide, especially with how she interacts with Anakin later on in this arc.
All in all, there is not much more else to say, even if I did once again leave it on a cliffhanger (sorry!).
Thanks again to my beta reader 'ArrinSnyders' for all his hard work. He made this chapter better than I thought it already.
Next time, Anakin tries to rush off to see if Ahsoka is ok!
As usual, comment and speculate at will. I'm looking forward to seeing what you guys think it happening here!
Speaking of which:
RyanSquad: I'm glad that the story was able to change your cautious opinion of it. Hope you enjoyed it.
Dream Plane: Glad you enjoyed the Skyguy and Snips interaction. They do indeed have each other for support. Be bad if something separated them wouldn't it?
As for Grievous and Dooku's targets... well... lots and lots of people! At least you sympathise with Dooku in a way. Blasted paperwork!
And no... who can blame Padmé. Anakin did kind of deserve it. XD
M3rN1kces: Thanks. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter, even if I thought it was a bit lacking. Sometimes I wonder if people just want the action stuff though. All the 'filler' comments that people make about character centric episodes of Clone Wars and Rebels make me doubt myself. :)
Erukat: Thanks. I'm glad you liked it at least. That's what is important I guess. I just assumed that most people wanted endless action without any interludes of downtime. Glad I was wrong. :)
Dooku and Grievous plan's will become more relevant in the future. The arc after this one is a pretty big one involved both of them, and it has one hell of a plot twist in it. I'm looking forward to that one already!
As for whether or not Dooku showed Grievous the file on Ahsoka... suffice to say he probably did... and Grievous is pissed! XD
Cat-Gods-Of-The-Cat-People: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed their interaction. The banter between them is great fun to write as always! XD
loldelegate: You are welcome. Hope you like this chapter too!
Ahsoka's ultimate direction in this story is one of the key parts of it, and hopefully I will be able to keep you all guessing until the very end when it is revealed. We are a while off it yet, but we are closer to the end than we are the start at this point! XD
SappySoulTaker: I'd agree with you myself, but I like leaving some things up to interpretation. I guess only Barriss knows if she survived or not? XD
Dressyone22: To be fair... if you take away the Sith Lord control, the slavers and the other immoral groups, the CIS is a pretty decent group with a strong argument. The Republic was corrupt and flawed, so they were right to want their independence. They just had the bad luck of having psychos being in charge of them!
Suffice to say, I'm not gonna completely shaft the CIS in this story. They are and will remain important right up to the finale of the story, so no worries there. As for writing a story about them one day... well... I think you'll be pleased with what I have planned for them in this one... hopefully. I'm in no place to write another story right now after all! XD
tf330129: Keeping it up as best I can. Thanks for the support! XD
Mysterious Guest One: I'm sorry you feel that way. If you don't want to read any further, I won't blame you for it. I've stopped reading a few stories myself because the author took creative decisions I disagreed with, so I know how it feels.
However, I will say that I don't blame everything wrong with Anakin and Padmé's marriage on Anakin alone. You were right to say that Padmé didn't want Anakin to leave the Order, which in turn made him even more unstable at times. However, within the context of this story and the scene that occurred, the argument was entirely Anakin's fault. He very nearly beat Clovis to death out of jealousy, and he has to be held accountable for it. Padmé likely snapped in anger at him and made it seem like it as all his fault. Perhaps it was... perhaps it wasn't, but in the context of the scene I chose to make Anakin the guilty party. If you were to view it outside the scene alone however you can attribute many different reason for the argument, and blame more than one person.
I can also see what you mean by saying Yoda and the Council are to blame for a lot of things that went wrong. They did stagnate and allow a serious threat to grow beneath them. The fall of the Jedi Order and rise of Sidious is their fault... but it is not theirs alone. Anakin made the decision to become Vader, and thus he is just as much at fault for killing everyone as Yoda and the Council are for sitting around doing nothing.
As for Obi-Wan trying to get Luke to kill his father... that is a point I've got my own issues with, so the less said about that... and Vader in general, the better.
Thanks for the comment though. I appreciate your opinion. :)
1saaa: Heh! That would be pretty funny now wouldn't it? A fair gamble by Palpy too, all things considered! XD
Grievous and Dooku have their own things to do, but you might be right about the plot twist being linked to them. Unfortunately there aren't many breadcrumbs I can give for her big twist just yet as we've got to get through this story arc first. Guess you'll have to speculate on that first! XD
And thanks for the concern about the cough. Who knows... maybe I have got an acute version of 'it'. I'll be fine though. :)