Chapter 87 – Dagobah

Author's Note: Marr isn't paid enough. At ALL. Lol.

To Nbk: Thanks. :)

I hope y'all are still enjoying the story! :D

~ Amina Gila

It's soon. So soon. Everything is winding down, and Marr pushes his fears to the back of his mind as he disembarks from his ship on Tatooine. They could use Obi-Wan's help for this, and possibly Master Yoda's, too, if they can find him. It's worth a try at least, and Marr can't help the near giddiness consuming all his senses. He sensed a shift in the Force on the way here, one indicating this choice is important, one that will make drastic changes in the near future. Hopefully good ones. He can hope. He does hope.

He's landed the ship – the one he originally left Mandalore on – near Obi-Wan's home and approaches with BD. He has the feeling the droid will come in handy. He usually does, and he's good company.

Obi-Wan doesn't return until later in the day, shortly before sundown, and he seems slightly surprised, but just as relieved.

"The time's almost up," Marr blurts out in a rush. "We're finalizing the last parts of the plan to get to Coruscant. The biggest difficultly will be getting into the palace, and then... well, Vader. And," Marr continues, "I came to see if you would be willing to help us. Just this once. We need everyone we can get. I'd much prefer going into it if I was with both you and Ahsoka. I know Master Yoda is alive, but I don't know if you've heard of him."

"I have," he confesses, "He's in exile. I do not know if he would want to become involved, but we can ask."

"Good." It couldn't hurt. He doesn't need Yoda's approval, but it would still make him feel better. For all that has changed, his respect for the Grandmaster is one thing that has not. "We have targets marked, and we need to divert Imperial troops to give us the pass we need to get to Coruscant. We'll steal some Star Destroyers, and it's going to be tricky, but after we get through..."

"You must be cautious," Obi-Wan warns, "Not even Master Yoda was able to defeat Sidious."

Marr refuses to let the warning dampen his excitement, but he understands its meaning, nevertheless. "The Force is with us," he replies instead. "I believe we are meant to win this battle, one way or another. I sense we will have more help than expected. The public does not support the Empire as it once did."

"You may be right," Obi-Wan reluctantly concedes. "I do not know. Luke is not yet ready."

"Well, he's going to have to be," Marr points out, "But he doesn't need to come with us to fight Sidious."

"I suppose you're right," he agrees. "It may be time. I will meditate on this and..."

"Whatever it is you do," Marr replies, "It's fine. Take your time. If you know where Master Yoda is, I would like to speak with him as well. We could use his help against Sidious, especially if he's already fought him once."

"I will take you there," Obi-Wan reluctantly agrees, "But we should take Luke with us."

Marr finds himself wondering if it's about his mission, or if it's more about himself. He can understand that. If... he lost his own child, he would never want to leave another one in his charge out of his sight. Being apart from Vizma is hard enough as is. And yet, despite it all, something about Obi-Wan seems slightly... different, perhaps. Marr imagines he's still living in denial, but he can understand that. He saw a small glimpse of how close Anakin and Obi-Wan once were, and he understands with clarity why it would destroy them both if... well, whatever happened between them.

"Why do you think Anakin is still there?" Obi-Wan asks him suddenly.

The question catches him slightly off-guard. "He offered Ahsoka and I a chance to join him when he saw us. He let us go without a fight. He didn't want to hurt us. I saw it. I felt it. I felt his fear when we asked him to betray Sidious."

"Anakin, as we knew him, would never have gone down such a path," Obi-Wan points out. "He would never have turned on us and the Jedi. He would never have turned on his family. I know how much loyalty meant to him."

"Perhaps he's not as lost as we thought," Marr replies quietly. "I talked to him shortly before Order 66. He feared something. I don't know what. I told him to talk to you. I don't know if he did. And either way, there is only so much anyone can handle. I don't know when or how he ended up like... this, but Ahsoka and I heard him confronting Sidious. He was reaching to us with the Force, and then... I don't know."

"He confronted Sidious?" Obi-Wan asks, almost faintly.

"He was arguing with Master Windu about whether they should kill him, I think," Marr replies. It's hard to talk about, and his memory is no longer clear, for all that the words blurred together through time and space, but he remembers. "Order 66 was given out right after that. Ahsoka and I escaped, and... here we are."

Obi-Wan looks distant, almost pained. "I never knew something was wrong," he confesses. "Anakin did talk to me. I still have the recording."

Marr wishes he could say the same. He can't say how badly he has wanted to see Anakin's face again, in something that's not been warped by time in his dreams.

"I have to try," Marr says, "For all of us. For Luke and Leia, if no one else."

"I wanted to believe," Obi-Wan admits finally, "A long time ago, that Anakin wasn't gone. Padme had said it, too, but I knew what he became. You never saw what I did. I tried, but he kept on fighting."

"He's a Sith," Marr points out, feeling oddly numb. He often does when he talks about Vader. "He's far more likely to hold onto what you wronged him for. It'll take far more than a simple apology for him to forgive you."

"I don't need Vader's forgiveness," he replies, firmly. Almost angrily. "He is a monster."

"Deeds don't make someone a monster." Idly, he finds himself wondering what Vader looks like under his mask and all of that now. He still remembers Malachor with clarity. Vader had hugged him there, awkwardly, reluctantly, but he had done it. It had reminded Marr so much of Anakin. He wants to feel that again. It was so...

He still hasn't forgotten how Vader nearly killed him, though.

"You never saw the security recordings at the Temple – what he did there."

Obi-Wan already mentioned this before, and Marr can't understand it himself, but he knows how much the Dark Side can initially warp someone's mind, immediately after Falling. "We fought on Mortis," Marr says, slowly, "Had you not stopped me then, I don't know what I would have done." And this is the truth, as much as he doesn't like to think about it. If he'd been listening to the Son still...

"But you didn't," Obi-Wan replies, "Vader did."

Marr sighs quietly. "Maybe, but I've seen people do far worse who changed for the better when they were given the chance." The things Bo and Anastasia have done are far worse than anything he's seen Vader do, whether he likes to think about it or not.

"I would have, had he wanted one," he retorts, "And he did not."

"I don't know what happened between you two, but I can tell you that when I talked to him, he did. He fears Sidious, and..." Frankly, he doesn't know what Sidious could have done to make him so scared. Or maybe he just doesn't want to think about it, because he heard plenty from Maul. "I know why, a little. Maul told me a lot about what Sidious was like. He... tortured him all the time, and Maul was too afraid to do anything that might upset him. He wanted to be away from him, but he wouldn't leave even if it seemed like he had the chance, because of fear, and he saw nowhere else to go. For him, there was power,too, and some measure of loyalty, but..." Maul hadn't outright said all of that, but Marr had figured out enough on his own from the way he talked about it.

Obi-Wan is quiet for a few long moments, his expression oddly... unreadable. "Why would he be loyal to Sidious?" he asks, and he's pretty sure the 'he' is Vader.

"Sith are trained to be that way until they have the chance to kill their master," Marr replies, "And really, Sidious is the only person he's had for years."

There's another long pause, where he doesn't reply.

"If we're going to find Yoda, we should leave soon," Obi-Wan decides finally, changing the topic.

**w**

Marr should have guessed Master Yoda was hiding on some backwater planet, literally. Dagobah is a jungle planet, one strong in the Force because of the teeming life there, and most of all, there's no other sentient life present. Obi-Wan wasn't happy about leaving Luke, but once they're guaranteed of the boy's usefulness in their plans, they'll go back to get him. Trapsing through the jungle is annoying and exhausting. It's hot and muggy, but at least Marr is wearing armor to shield him from all this. Obi-Wan explains why they're here as soon as they see each other again, while Marr tries not to be overwhelmed by seeing his old master again.

He hasn't seen Yoda in person since – shortly after Ahsoka left, really. Because then, they'd gone out to the fronts, and he never saw the Temple again. He's reminded abruptly of those days when he was still his padawan. It hadn't been for long, and he'd long been hurt that Yoda had passed him off to someone else, but he let go of those feelings years ago.

If not for that, he wouldn't have met everyone in his family, new and old.

(And truthfully, he thinks some of Yoda's constant lectures about avoiding the Dark Side is part of what made Marr so curious about it in the first place, so maybe he has him to thank for this, too, in a twisted way.)

"In exile, I am," the Jedi Master replies as an answer.

"Is it really exile?" Marr asks, moving closer, nearly walking right into a tree branch that he ducks last second. Ugh. The one bad thing about helmets is the drastically narrowed field of vision. "Or is it hiding? And what good is survival if we can't pass on what we know? After Sidious is gone, we will rebuild the Jedi. All of it. All who survived went into hiding."

"Meditate on this, to determine if this is the path I am meant to follow, I will," he decides. "Come to my home, you should."

Um. Okay. Sure. Marr has no idea what kind of home Master Yoda could have built, but he would like to see (if only to make fun of how tiny it probably is).

The one benefit of having a helmet is that if he bangs his head maneuvering around the tiny house, he doesn't need to worry. Obi-Wan, however, does need to be extra careful, and he looks none too happy about it. Marr tries his best not to laugh.

"I imagine it's nice to have a building your size," Marr can't stop himself from saying. Obi-Wan shoots him a look, and he shrugs. What? It's been years since he was with the Jedi. Maybe he has forgotten what's defined as respect.

Yoda makes a grumpy sound that usually means he's not grumpy at all.

"I mean it," he says. "It took me a long time to get used to being surrounded solely by human-sized buildings instead of mythosaur-sized ones."

"You really have become a Mandalorian," Obi-Wan says, flatly.

"I embraced my heritage," he replies flippantly. "It's who I am."

"No longer a Jedi, you are."

"No. The Order has fallen. I found a new way in times of chaos."

"Dangerous, the Dark Side is."

"Yes," he agrees, "It may be, but it's also part of life. Emotions are a part of life. It only raises the question of whether we care more for protecting life or Light."

"Light is life," Obi-Wan objects.

"Yes and no. Light is but a small part of the Force, but there is guidance and strength in Darkness just as much. They are truly inseparable. They fuel each other."

"And we chose not to be the darkness in the galaxy," Obi-Wan replies, "So we can help those who are." He decides now is not a good time to point out that should mean he'd be willing to help Vader, because he's one of those who needs it.

"And there are times only the Light may not be enough," he points out. The Dark Side does give him more power – and it feels as though it gives him a certain sense of stability he always lacked as a Jedi. Maybe that's not true for everyone, but it is for him.

"A dangerous path, you have chosen." Yes, Yoda is definitely not happy.

"I know, but I've found balance. And I'm not here to discuss the Force. I'm here to get your help, Master, if you're willing. I don't expect you to approve of what I'm doing or what I am."

Still frowning, Yoda disappears outside.

To be fair, he doesn't seem a lot happier when he returns. "Go with you, I will," he replies. "At an end, all this is."

Marr doesn't ask what the 'all this' is. He assumed his once-master meant Sidious or the Empire. (He wishes he had asked.)

**w**

Ahsoka hasn't seen him in so long. Their last meeting hadn't been on good terms; at least it hadn't ended well. She wishes she'd had a warning. They should have... something. It was beyond relieving to know that Obi-Wan was still alive, but she wasn't truly ready to see him. Quite honestly, Ahsoka very much doubts she ever will be.

He looks older, more tired and worn. His skin is sun-tanned, as it should be from living on a desert planet, and his hair has mostly gone grey. 'Old man' Anakin's voice whispers in her mind.

"Obi-Wan."

"Ahsoka." And beside him, more strikingly, is Master Yoda.

She hasn't seen him since she left the Order, except for when she briefly spotted him on Malachor, and...

It's overwhelming to have them both in front of her again. Marr had mentioned how it felt as though their past is catching up to them, and now, that's the only thing she sees. What startles her is how badly she wants it.

So much has gone between them, and they never had time to sort it through. They were separated before they had a chance, and Ahsoka doesn't know that she could have forgiven him otherwise, because she has. Even if she doesn't fully trust him anymore, well, the point is moot, because there is no Jedi Council left anymore.

"It's good to see you alive," she says, because there is truly no other way to give voice to the endless thoughts swirling through her mind. It feels like she's looking through a door into her past and if she just reaches out and touches it, she'll be sucked through. She'll be back there, back home with Anakin again.

"You as well, Ahsoka."

He says no more. There is nothing to say – an 'I missed you' would be utterly insufficient for them both. She hardly knew Obi-Wan, and he barely knew her, but they were friends anyway, bound together by the one thing that has always held their family together: Anakin Skywalker.

If someone told her he was the sun the galaxy revolved around, she wouldn't be surprised.

"We're almost ready," Marr says instead. "We need one final diversion, and I think it's time I discuss the matter with Crimson Dawn myself. Maul is gone, and it's been taken over by... someone else. I don't know if she's favorable toward us. That, I think, is something you could offer us a small amount of assistance with, Obi-Wan."

"Of course," he replies. "If that's what it takes."

"This isn't only about the mission," Marr reminds quietly. "It's about the Order. About our family."

Although, in truth, Ahsoka doesn't know what to think about the Order being rebuilt. She wants it, for the sake of the galaxy, but it will take centuries to reach a fraction of its former glory, even with all the help of the survivors she knows of. Seeing it would be a reminder of what was lost, and she doesn't know if she wants to live in its constant reminder. Maybe. If Anakin is there, that's all that will matter.

Maybe.

If he can truly be a Jedi anymore, seeing as he's broken every part of their Code.

**w**

Marr doesn't know why he has an odd feeling about this mission from the start. Part of him wants to chalk it up to being the first mission he's been with Obi-Wan on in eighteen years, but it's something more than that. It's a ripple in the Force, one saying that something of great importance is about to unfold.

Not helpful. That could be any one of a million things, especially on the galaxy's most backwater planet, Daiyu. It's a good place for people to hide, and a good place for them to have a little important chat with Qi'ra of Crimson Dawn before they turn on each other and try to stab each other in the back, because this alliance lasts just long enough to destroy Sidious.

After that, the New Republic, or whatever exactly arises, will, hopefully, gain the strength to destroy those criminals entirely.

Thankfully, with Obi-Wan's assistance, Marr thinks it went well. Fairly. They manage to reach a shaky agreement, at least. (After which Marr has every intent in destroying Crimson Dawn himself – they're criminals. Murderers.)

And – Marr feels it with a sudden start, the cold that permeates the air. Vader. Vader's here. Somehow.

It's a question of who the Sith is after, but Marr distantly remembers hearing that Vader was hunting down Crimson Dawn now that they're causing so much chaos, but it's hard to say what's a rumor and what's the truth.

Marr will admit to hoping that Vader is doing well, but just not well enough to ruin their plans. They're so close, and they can't let the Empire get wind of what they're doing, so they leave the meeting hopefully not too quickly and scram.

Making it off-planet won't be possible without alerting Vader, but they can get as far away Qi'ra as possible and try to blend in.

Which is exactly what they do.

That doesn't help the unsettled feeling Marr has – somehow, he keeps encountering Vader and every time, it's with a different family member, but Marr has no idea what will happen now. Vader and Obi-Wan are not on the best of terms, to say the least, and Marr doesn't want to be caught in the middle of that.

"I never thought I would end up here again," Obi-Wan grumbles as they move down the streets together. They look inconspicuous, but if Vader is looking for them... well. They can't hide.

"Again?" Marr asks, trying to ease the tension.

"I came here the last time I saw Vader. It's a long story."

"Pretty sure we have time until Vader shows up here again," Marr points out, dryly. He can't help it.

"Oh, I didn't see him here. This was just the start of the... chain of events that led to it. I did see an Inquisitor though."

"I'm happy to report they're all dead," Marr says, "Except the First Sister. My mother." He's well-accustomed to it, but somehow it still hurts knowing what she became.

"You know about that?"

"Yeah. I found out when she captured my daughter. Then, she attacked the rebel base on Garel, also a long story, but we made it out alive. It was right after that I first met Leia. She's so much like her father."

Obi-Wan lets out an exaggerated huff. "I know. I chased her all over this city when she was ten. It's where I first met Leia."

"How did a princess end up in a place like this?" Marr inquires incredulously. Something flickers in the Force, then, and he sharply scans the area. He doesn't see Vader, but he can feel him close. There might be a... confrontation, and he'd rather it not happen in plain sight. Maybe it's best if they find shelter somewhere or something.

"One of the Inquisitors kidnapped her, to draw me out of hiding," Obi-Wan explains.

"How did they find the connection?"

"We worked with Senator Organa during the war. I imagine she suspected I might come back to help a friend."

"And it worked," Marr muses, scanning the streets for any sign of... anything. He can feel Vader very close by, but he doesn't see anything. "Perhaps we should go somewhere more concealed."

"I agree," Obi-Wan replies, and they start moving through the streets again, for some nearby buildings, somewhere where there's fewer people. Maybe if they're lucky, they'll be able to avoid Vader entirely – maybe he'll have all his focus on Crimson Dawn – although Marr knows that's not likely.

They don't make it much further.

Because in truth, Anakin being Anakin, he's still insanely good at stealth, and Marr should not be as surprised as he is when they round a corner, only to almost literally come face-to-face with Vader.

Obi-Wan's hand immediately moves towards his concealed lightsaber, though he doesn't pull it out.

"Hold on," Marr begins, raising his hands, "Maybe we can just –"

Except Vader's not even looking at him, only at Obi-Wan, and his pain flares first, in crashing, smothering waves, followed by a violent flux of rage, and he flicks his hand outwards, flinging Obi-Wan back with the Force.

"– Talk," he finishes lamely. As if anyone in their family has ever done that.

**w**

Fury isn't a strong enough word for how Vader feels – he had risked everything, been willing to sacrifice everything if it meant getting Obi-Wan back. Pain wasn't a strong enough term for what he felt when Obi-Wan walked away, leaving him there, half-paralyzed, to crawl back to the shuttle on his own, knowing everything he fueled himself with was gone. There would be no hope for anything better, for not constantly being alone. That pain had turned to anger, to something past anger, demanding vengeance and hurt.

He wants Obi-Wan to feel some measure of the pain he always does and yet...

Yet nothing – this is the way of the Sith.

It's Vader's way, because Anakin is truly gone.

Obi-Wan stands, drawing his lightsaber instantly, never taking his eyes off Vader. "You can't win, Darth," he replies, mockingly. He doesn't even care to use Vader's actual name – as if he's too beneath his notice to bother with. (Like he often acted when Anakin was his padawan.)

Vader ignites his lightsaber, slashing at him, his every instinct screaming vengeance. They don't have much space to move, but that doesn't stop either of them. Vader distantly hears Theseus yelling at them to stop it, but it's lost though his haze of rage. They trade blows rapidly, but Obi-Wan is lacking the skills he had the last time they fought.

"You are still weak," Vader snarls, pressing his blade down.

"Merely out of practice," he replies, "Not all of us practice on murdering defenseless people."

It burns inside him, tearing his heart open, and Vader shoves him back, slashing at him again. He is no stranger to killing – he never has been, but he always loathes it. He did it all in the name of Order, for the Republic, and then, for the Empire. He did it without question, for the greater good; it's not as if the Jedi were any better.

"And I am not a fool enough to embrace the Dark Side," adds Obi-Wan.

Whatever shreds of control he has snap entirely, and he wraps the Force around his once-master's neck, strangling him. Part of his mind cries out in protest, that he doesn't want to end this, and maybe he doesn't, but part of him almost does, and Vader just wants to hurt him.

"Anakin," Theseus says, finally moving forwards, "Stop this." He's radiating confusion but mostly horror.

"He is a Jedi and a traitor."

"He's also our master."

"I only have one Master." He knows that with certainty, and with bitterness – he doesn't want to be with Sidious. He can see how, in many places, the Empire is falling short, and Sidious is doing nothing. He is not bringing order.

"And I think you've hurt each other enough."

A part of him wants to come back with a sharp retort that Obi-Wan knows nothing of pain, but then, he remembers with clarity the look on his face after Vader's mask was slashed in two – though what Obi-Wan was upset about, he doesn't know. It's not as though he cared for Anakin. But still, reluctantly, Vader lets him go.

Vader turns away, unsure why something in him suddenly feels guilty. He's no stranger to guilt, but it's... confusing. "What were you doing on a planet such as this?" he asks.

"Well, it's a good place to hide, right? And I could ask you the same question."

"Hunting criminals such as you."

"That's tricky. Can either of you explain what happened? You've been trying to rip each other to pieces incessantly about something that happened decades ago."

"Eight years ago," Vader corrects sharply. It's a genuine question, not antagonistic. Theseus was never like that. Somehow, it still angers him. He has never... spoken about this. He doesn't really know how.

"And this," Theseus adds, turning to where Obi-Wan is standing up again, "Is the Dark Side. Letting your anger cloud your judgment? Hurting someone for hurting you? It's revenge. You may not want to see it, but you know it."

Obi-Wan ignores him entirely, whether out of stubbornness or because he's still trying to catch his breath, Vader doesn't know.

"Can we just go somewhere out of sight and talk?" Theseus asks. "I'm sure we can sort this out." He doesn't sound too hopeful, and he shouldn't be.

"This is not something words or faith can fix," Vader snaps back.

"I haven't spent the last four years trying to bring my family back together only for everyone to try to kill each other."

"He hid my daughter from me."

"I protected her from the Empire," Obi-Wan retorts, "And I ensured her safety. It's what Anakin would've wanted."

"Don't let Sidious find them."

"He was dying," Vader cuts back sharply. "Sidious rebuilt what was left into me."

There's a muted horror from Theseus, and he senses a twinge of... something from Obi-Wan. "You were dying," Obi-Wan argues, "And Sidious was coming. I couldn't stand by and watch Anakin die, even if it wasn't really him."

"Perhaps you already are a Sith at heart," Vader retorts – really, he can't help it. On Mustafar, he was too out-of-it for it to feel like betrayal, and he knew he was dying, and it was pointless, and he deserved it, because if his own master was angry enough to try to kill him, he must have a reason. But after – after, it was different. If he had to die, he would much rather it be beside Obi-Wan than without – but now, he knows, understands that he was always alone.

Friends and family are no more than an illusion. He'll be weak as long as he relies on them. (So, why does he want to so much?)

"Sidious will be dead soon," Theseus offers, "Then we can figure out where we stand."

"You will fail," Vader warns. "He will see it. He always does."

"If that is what the Force wills, but I don't sense failure."

Vader doesn't know that he can believe that, not after all these years he's spent with Sidious. He knows what his master is like. He always knows when Vader is even thinking about betraying him, and there's no way he wouldn't sense... whatever Theseus is planning. "He will stop you."

"He will try. He may be overconfident. Everyone has a weakness of some kind."

"He has prepared for everything." He knows Theseus won't back down from this though. He's too stubborn in that way, and it means...

"He's prepared for everything he can see coming," Theseus argues, "No one is completely infallible. The galaxy will never find peace until he is gone, and in the end, that is the Force's will, however it will happen."

Vader has always believed in destiny and the will of the Force, but he doesn't want Theseus to die. It's not as if that matters though.

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