Chapter 29 – Crashing
Author's Note: This fic is fully drafted with a total of 35 chapters! We'll be posting every other Thursday until it's done. ^-^
~ Amina Gila
"I would like to go," Ahsoka requests, silently begging them to agree. She has to. This is Anakin. She has to go there for him. He would do the same for her. She knows that without a doubt.
"You may come," Master Obi-Wan agrees. Is she imagining his reluctance? She can't tell. "This may be dangerous."
If not for the severity of the situation, Ahsoka suspects only a group of clones would be sent out to verify, but Anakin is too important, hence why she and Master Obi-Wan are going as well. And she can't deny being worried about him. He was... in pain. She could feel it. And it's taking far, far too long for them to gather troops and prepare to go, even if they're only taking a small number there to avoid drawing attention.
They're taking a shuttle. It shouldn't – hopefully – be noticed.
That doesn't mean Ahsoka isn't nervous. They weren't prepared to go out, and it took a while for Rex and the boys to come back so they could get a clearer idea of what they're up against. In the end, it doesn't give them much. Whoever it was that captured Anakin, they did a good job in covering their tracks.
Except... when they exit hyperspace above Mustafar, there's a Separatist ship there. A flare of unease runs through her, but they make it down into the atmosphere without being intercepted.
"This is unusual," Obi-Wan remarks, "And it's making me uneasy."
"Nothing could go wrong, could it?" she asks.
"It's always when we ask that, that everything goes downhill," Rex cautions.
Ahsoka huffs, leaning forwards to look out the viewport. They have a long way down, and they don't know where on the planet to start looking either. It'll take some time. Quite a bit of time, she suspects.
"There's an energy reading coming up ahead," one of the clones reports.
"Find it," Master Obi-Wan commands, "I sense Anakin is here."
That, predictably, is the moment they get an incoming transmission from the Jedi Council. "We received a transmission from Mustafar," Master Windu tells them, "Skywalker is there."
"I sense him here," Master Obi-Wan replies.
"Find him immediately," Master Windu commands. "We cannot risk losing him to the Sith."
"We won't," Ahsoka promises, leaning forwards. Her master glares her into silence. She bites her lip, stung and angry. Somehow, with Master Obi-Wan, she never can do anything right. It's not much better with Anakin, but at least he sometimes makes her feel... wanted. She doesn't understand why Master Obi-Wan is so short with her about everything. He has this way of making her feel like there's something wrong with her.
Maybe there is. She's... well, snippy. Disrespectful. There's a reason no one wanted to train her. That's why no one thought she could become a Jedi, but she's stubborn, and it's all she has so...
She must. Somehow.
"It appears Skywalker may be in the process of freeing himself," Master Windu continues, as if she hadn't interrupted at all. "He may have received outside assistance. We suspect Count Dooku may be there."
Here? Now? That's... not good.
"We'll be careful," Obi-Wan promises, and the hologram flickers off.
They can be, but Ahsoka can only hope it'll be enough.
That's when she feels it again, another sudden, blinding flare of pain from her master. He wasn't even reaching for her, but she feels it anyway, and she knows something is very, very wrong. Terribly wrong.
The shuttle lands, and Ahsoka is up and out before anyone can stop her. Yes, she's rushing into it, but she needs to find him. And fast, because something is happening, and –
"Ahsoka!" Master Obi-Wan is decidedly unimpressed, of course, but that doesn't stop her. She can only continue stubbornly, as though he never said anything, because they can't afford to wait.
"I can feel him!" she protests. "He needs us!"
"I feel it, too, but if we rush into this, we could only make it worse," Master Obi-Wan argues. "We must split up and scan the area."
She barely waits for his directions before taking off into the building. She doesn't see anything in there, but still, Anakin's presence is... calling to her. She needs to find him, fast.
Ahsoka stops, closing her eyes and reaching out with the Force, trying it locate the blinding light that his presence is. He's outside.
She follows that that out onto a back part of the building. Of course, her idiot master is going completely the opposite way of where he should be to get back to safety.
She follows it to the edge of the support beams, not bothering to comm Obi-Wan with the report – there's no time.
She sees the clashing lightsabers from afar, moving in a swirl of red and black. The Sith are fighting. She hasn't met a true Sith before. She fought Ventress, but it was different. Ventress is an assassin, not a Sith Lord.
And where's Anakin? What's he doing?
Getting across the beams is dangerous, but it doesn't stop her or slow her down. She keeps moving, heart pounding. Anakin needs her. He needs her now. She comms Master Obi-Wan, just in case. "Master, I've found them," she says as she moves.
"We'll track your comm," Obi-Wan replies, "Stay where you are."
She can't do that, though, but she shouldn't disobey orders either. But if Anakin needs her, how can she deny that? So, slowly, she keeps moving.
She's close enough to see Dooku and another person fighting now, both wielding red lightsabers. And behind them, she can see Anakin. She wasn't... intending to interfere until Obi-Wan arrived, at least not until she sees Anakin tackle the other person off the beams all the idiots are carefully balanced on.
And starts falling straight towards the lava below.
She reacts instinctively, sprinting to the end as close as she can get and reaching out, wrapping the Force around him. Not now. She cannot have come this far, only for him to die right here when she could've stopped it.
Anakin's presence stills and flickers into quiet, as if he just lost consciousness, and she suppresses a groan as she continues lifting him, pulling him towards her. She doesn't have anywhere to put him, but she doesn't stop to question it, focusing solely and pulling him to safety.
She can feel danger tingling in the Force, but doesn't pay it mind, instead continuing to pull. She rarely has focused this much, but now, she has no choice.
And she keeps pulling until he reaches the beam.
Ahsoka pulls him onto it awkwardly, desperately wishing he'd return to consciousness because this is awkward, and she has to use the Force still to hold him here. It's not until he's close that she sees the blackened area on his robes and through it, a deep, long black-charred gash on his chest. She inhales sharply at the up-close view. She hadn't noticed in the dim lighting until Ahsoka got him up here, and now, it's all she can do to stumble back on this much too narrow area, trying to get him elsewhere.
"Master," she calls him frantically, but he's too out of it to hear her. She can only balance awkwardly in a crouch, exhaustion nagging at every inch of her body from the deep usage of the Force, while struggling to hold him here. It's not exactly working.
The pipes up ahead were destroyed, likely by lava, and the splashes are destroying everything here. There must've been a shield that was taken down, and now, it's putting all of them in serious danger.
Hands fumbling, she comms Master Obi-Wan again. "I have him, Master," she reports breathlessly, "We need..."
"We're coming," he reassures, "We'll be there in a few minutes."
"I don't know if we have a few minutes!" she cries, eyes wide as a splash of lava runs right beneath them.
"Then move to a safer position."
"I can't! We're trapped out here over the lava." About to become lava, actually. For the first time in a very long time, Ahsoka feels a complete and honest fear. Anakin is injured, and she's never seen that before, and they're trapped here and waiting until Master Obi-Wan can finally make it out over here. She has no idea how long that'll take. All she can do is wrap her arms tightly around Anakin and cling to him, holding him here, knowing any moment they could lose their very precarious balance or could get swept away by lava.
Another splash strikes the area connecting where Ahsoka is to the part closer to the building. The edge of the beam a few feet from her now is a glowing orange from the heat. For a moment, all she can think of is how easy it would be to catch fire, and the only reason she's still here is because they're right above a beam going down into the river.
That could change any moment.
Master Obi-Wan was right – there is only one way out of this.
Jump.
Which is complicated, because Anakin is here, and he obviously can't make it.
Fine. She's a Jedi. She can do this.
Ahsoka pushes herself back to her feet after doing her best to balance Anakin there and jumps towards the safe part farther back. Except it's a bit longer than she thought, and she almost misses it, catching barely into the pipe and struggling to pull herself on top of it. A splash of lava runs below her, and she thought it was far enough out of her way, except a spark of it burns against her thigh, and she lets out a yelp of pain.
They're going to have a frying situation very soon if someone doesn't get here.
Ahsoka starts reaching out with the Force for Anakin when she hears the roar of an approaching engine. It's not Republic. It's... Separatist?!
Oh.
Oh, no.
Ahsoka pulls out her lightsaber with one hand, anyway, firmly intent on fighting to the last if she has to. They are not getting her and her master if she has anything to say about it.
"Put your weapon down, child," Dooku says from the ramp.
"Never," she snarls, bearing her fangs.
"I am not here to harm you."
Ahsoka doesn't have time to respond. Instead, she looks down, seeing another wave coming towards them. Uh oh.
Maybe she can jump on board and steal the ship? Unlikely, but...
She jumps anyway when Dooku lifts her master with the Force. "Let go of him!" she yells, slashing her lightsaber at him.
He blocks her one-handedly with his lightsaber, shoving her into the wall. She slams against it with a grunt and sprints forwards again, only for the same thing to repeat itself.
"I am helping you," he replies mildly, "You should take that into consideration."
This is the man that cut off her master's arm, and she has no doubt he'd do the same to her, or much worse yet to Anakin if he captures them. Her master is already injured, and she knows the Separatists won't care.
"Let go of him!" She slashes at him again, but Dooku throws her back with the Force this time, deeper into the ship. He slams the door on her before she can do anything. Ahsoka jumps back up, growling furiously, slamming her hand on the button to reopen the door.
He isn't even taking the time to look at her, and it's nearly enough to drive her crazy. This time, he just pins her against the wall with a flick of his wrist before pulling Anakin the rest of the way into the shuttle and dropping him onto the floor, not nearly carefully enough in her opinion.
Dooku disappears towards the cockpit after, and she can already feel the engine kicking in and them taking off.
And for the first time, Ahsoka has absolutely no idea what to do about it. She can't jump out. She can't fight Dooku either, clearly.
That isn't enough to stop her from trying.
Clenching her jaw, Ahsoka stands up from where she went to check on Anakin for a moment, just to ensure he's temporarily stabilized, and heads for the cockpit after Dooku.
She's not letting him stop her. She needs to get back to Coruscant, and Ahsoka won't allow them to be captured.
Is it dangerous? Definitely. Is that enough to stop her? Never. She won't let this Sith slow her down. The only concern is that she needs a way to get past them, first.
Yes, she's afraid. That doesn't mean she won't work past it.
She squares her shoulders and moves forwards, stepping into the cockpit. There are droids here, but mostly ones she doesn't need to worry about. Exhausted or no, Ahsoka ignites her lightsaber again and slashes through one of the droids that tries attacking her.
"Persistent, I see," Dooku remarks.
Ahsoka resists the urge to snarl at him for saying that. She doesn't need to receive praise from a Sith. "Let. Us. Go!" she all but shouts.
"I would have thought Skywalker taught you better than that," he remarks, obviously amused, "He will be arrested for treason if he returns to the Republic."
"Why? Because you set him up?" she throws back, glowering. What did Dooku do to her master?!
"What matters is that he will be," the Sith replies, "Do you want to put him at risk?"
"You're lying!" Ahsoka accuses fiercely. He must be.
"I'm afraid I'm not," he tells her much too lightly, "He has been aiding me in taking down Sidious."
"Really?" she scoffs, "Only to destroy you, too."
"The Republic will not see it that way," he promises, "Better to avoid the complications altogether. He is in need of medical treatment that you, no doubt, be unable to provide right away."
She hates to admit that he does have a point – they don't have what her master would probably need right away on their shuttle. Dooku probably has something, at least, on the Separatist ship he has up in space. That doesn't mean she's willing to admit it.
"Because you framed him?" she accuses.
"Everything he did was his choice," the Sith replies, unruffled. "Surrender, padawan, and we may speak of this peaceably."
Right. "Like you did on Geonosis?"
"Like I would have on Geonosis," he corrects.
There's too much talking and it's starting to drive her crazy. He's stalling. Waiting until they get far enough away from the surface for Obi-Wan to track them, isn't he? "I don't believe you."
"You do not have to."
**w**
Obi-Wan reports to the Council as soon as he gets back to the shuttle. "Find them immediately," Master Windu commands, looking as annoyed by it as Obi-Wan himself is. Which is very much so. He gave Ahsoka strict orders not to go anywhere, but she clearly did, and now, he has no idea where she is.
"Likely, they're heading towards the Separatist ship in the system," Obi-Wan replies, "But we can follow."
"Do that," he commands, "The information Skywalker has is far too valuable to be lost." Of course, Anakin is important for reasons far more important than that, but Obi-Wan won't argue with Windu about that this time.
"Alright, follow their shuttle," Obi-Wan orders, cutting the transmission. He has a very, very bad feeling about this. Dooku likely knows they're here, and Obi-Wan can sense him. He gave Ahsoka strict orders to stay near, and why didn't she listen?! He's been trying to get her out of her recklessness, but it's not working. Then again, he was never able to get Anakin out of it, either. Now that he has to share training Ahsoka, he doesn't find it a fraction as amusing as he would've otherwise.
Controlling her is very, very hard. She doesn't listen. She lacks the respect a Jedi must have. He had chosen her specifically for those reasons because he thought it would be amusing, but it's really not. Not when Anakin's life is on the line like this, not to mention the fate of the entire galaxy.
Ahsoka knows about the time travel. Why is she acting as though she doesn't understand the dangers involved if Anakin is lost?!
Except until Republic reinforcements arrive, there is nothing Obi-Wan will be able to do. He doesn't understand it, and he can't deny being angry. He heard from Rex what Anakin did, and it was far beyond reckless. It's far beyond anything he would even think of Anakin doing, but then again, he often underestimates his padawan's abilities and fearlessness.
Except now, both his padawans are in this mess, and Obi-Wan doesn't know how to change that. If the building hadn't been falling down when he made it through, they might've gotten there faster. Sensing Anakin's pain didn't make any of it easier either.
He can't help the worry in his mind, wondering what will be left of Anakin when they finally find him.
If they find him.
The memory of seeing Anakin dying flashes through his mind again, and Obi-Wan quickly forces it away. It's nothing more than a nightmare of another time. He won't lose Anakin, because his padawan will always find his way back, but he can't help this fear, even if he tries letting it go.
He's a Jedi, and he shouldn't be so attached to Anakin, but Anakin is... everything to him. He always has been.
**w**
Padme knew that something bad would happen, hence why she didn't want to leave Anakin, but she didn't have another choice. It was a sort of instinctive knowledge, but she had no evidence of it, aside from how it seemed like an obvious trap to lure Anakin out. Of course, he'd go somewhere to save her.
He'd go anywhere to save her, and sometimes, it's terrifying. Usually, she doesn't have a problem with him being in danger because he's lived in it, and he's a Jedi. Everyone knows they're capable of things that normal people can't even dream of.
Her worry for him is usually a sort of distant thing, something that doesn't largely occupy her mind, because she knows that he'll be fine, and he's always in these dangers.
And more than that, Padme has grown used to that worry. Yes, it's stressful to be worried about her husband so constantly, but even so, she knew from the beginning that their duties would always be first. It was Anakin, not her, who couldn't understand that.
That doesn't mean she doesn't feel guilty for leaving him behind when she knew it was a trap that she was used as bait in – though she doesn't know who it was that set it up. Surely, Dooku couldn't know about their relationship. Or perhaps she's simply being paranoid, because everyone knows they're friends. That is no secret – most people know their history and that they're quite close.
No one has a reason to suspect they're anything more than that.
Yes, she may have done what she had to, but that doesn't stop her from feeling guilty, even if Dorme is insistent on assuring her that there was nothing she could've done except gotten herself killed, which is probably true.
This happened before, Padme tries reminding herself. It happened with the Malevolence, and Anakin made it back. There was nothing to worry about then, but that... It's just a feeling, is all. Something is happening, changing. She can't pinpoint it, but something is wrong
Sleep doesn't come that night.
**w**
Rex didn't agree with General Skywalker's plan, but he didn't object, because his General only ever surprises him and does the impossible, but he's still worried when he hears of Anakin's capture. He has no idea what to do about it – not that there's anything he can do, except wait for the Jedi Council's next decision. No doubt, they will be searching for his General and Commander, because Ahsoka is gone, too.
He remembers enough from the alternate future to know that Anakin has – no doubt – been tortured already.
It's just how the Separatists work – they're brutal, merciless.
They use droids, and droids are incapable of feeling. It shows.
Not that General Skywalker ever said anything about what happened to him, but the tight expression and dark look in Kix's eyes said far more than words ever needed to, as for the fact that Anakin frequently had difficulty walking and... a long list of things that he never explained in detail.
Rex doesn't remember everything. Many pieces are missing, and sometimes he only remembers half of what happened, but he remembers Zygerria. He could never forget Zygerria. It was right after Umbara, and it...
Was one of the worst missions he's ever been on.
He's relatively certain if he ends up there again, someone's going to get skinned alive.
And Rex will have no sympathy for that.
But either way, that's irrelevant. What does matter is that both General Skywalker and Ahsoka are gone, and Rex has no idea what's happening to them. They are capable of things he's never seen or imagined, and they always surprise him but... perhaps it's just a feeling, or him overreacting, but he thinks something is wrong this time.
He overheard the Commander when she was talking to General Kenobi, and she sounded terrified.
The Commander is never terrified. She often acts as though she has even less self-preservation than General Skywalker himself, which is saying something. Or maybe it's just that she seems less aware of her limitations than Anakin is. He seems capable of literally anything. The same cannot be said about Ahsoka. The General's far more skilled than any of the other Jedi that Rex has fought with, both this time and before.
He can only hope that the Council will react immediately.
**w**
Obi-Wan feels completely numb as he watches the recordings Anakin sent them. It was dangerous of him, but smart, to send it to them. They needed this information. It wasn't much, but it was a lot of information, including the most recent security recordings.
He'd never have imagined that there was any truth to the claim of Anakin working with Dooku. It was outrageous enough for him to laugh it off, but he knew something was wrong and had been for a while. Too many things weren't adding up.
Either way, Anakin should've known better than that. He can't believe this could be possible, but it's obvious enough. Somehow, Dooku must've tricked him, but Obi-Wan can't believe Anakin could do something so stupid.
He's a Jedi. He...
This doesn't make sense. Why would any Jedi do that?
And why Anakin?
He can't help feeling sick over the conversation with Anakin and Sidious. Sidious was Palpatine. It makes a horrifying amount of sense. Of course, it was, and of course, he wanted control over Anakin. Though they don't even know what happened to Sidious, it's still important to make sure the public understands who Sidious was. The Chancellor had gone on a couple-day break – which was understandable, since many people do during the stress of the war – but now, it's obvious why he really wanted it, and it makes Obi-Wan sick to think about.
He was just doing it to get more time with Anakin. To hurt him and... Force knows what else.
A few days ago, Obi-Wan would've thought the possibility of Anakin Falling outrageous. He still does, but now, there's a horrifying chance of truth to it. Not that Obi-Wan believes it any more possible than he did earlier, but he does know the Sith were trying to reach that.
Is that why Ahsoka's so... Dark? Is it because of the influence the Sith have over Anakin? Obi-Wan doesn't entirely know what the extent of that is, and it scares him far more than he wants to admit, even to himself.
Because truthfully? Anakin has always had a... streak of darkness to him that Obi-Wan couldn't understand. He tried his best to help him move past it, but he never could, and now, it makes sense.
Of course, he couldn't, when the Sith were influencing him.
How no one noticed, Obi-Wan has no idea. They should've. He should've. Anakin should've. The Council definitely should have.
Not as if it matters anymore.
"I'm afraid we must give this information to the Senate," Master Shaak Ti says at last, "We will need the support of the public."
"Yes," Master Windu agrees, "But first, we must ensure Sidious has been dealt with."
"This will cause a massive amount of unrest," Master Plo Koon adds.
"We have no way of knowing who else was in on this information and was working with Sidious," Obi-Wan has to point out, grudgingly. And that, he thinks, is the worst part. They have no idea who can or can't be trusted – not that Jedi trust politicians in the first place. They're all corrupted on some level or other, and those that aren't are a percentage small enough not to be counted. Qui-Gon had been sure to teach him that. "For all we know, this may be common knowledge among those close to him."
"If this is the case, we may be forced to take control of the Senate to ensure a peaceful transition of power," Master Windu asserts.
"To a dark path, this line of thought will carry us," Master Yoda interjects, "Meditate on this, we must. Perhaps provide some insight, the Force will."
The Force, which seems to be in more turmoil than ever. It has been since Obi-Wan sensed a flux of something on Mustafar. What it was, he can't say, but something changed there.
He has his... suspicions about what happened, but he can't jump to assumptions. There is no way to guarantee. He can only hope Sidious is gone though.
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