Last Hope

by The Wasp1995

Immediately after the fall of Ben Solo, Luke Skywalker has exiled himself to the planet of Ahch-To to live out the rest of his days in shame and to end the Jedi once and for all. But when offered a chance to undo all of the horrible events of the past, Luke takes it and embarks on one last hero's journey to create a future that never was. Time Travel fic

48. Interlude III: Anakin's Memories

Anakin found himself standing in a vast realm of emptiness. Everything around his vision was pitch black, with virtually no indication as to where he was or its purpose.

Glancing down, he observed that his body remained intact. So were the items attached to the holding belt, including his lightsaber. Wiggling fingers and toes confirmed that he retained some sort of physical presence in this strange place. He even had his bionic hand back. But what was it?

"Hello?" he called out into the void.

It echoed for a brief moment before fading into the fabric of the inky blackness.

"What is this?"

The question seemed to trigger prior memories before arriving here: fighting on Mandalore, Obi-Wan, dueling with Luke, the Chancellor, Padme dying…

Yes, it all came flooding back. And so did his outrage and anger.

"Show yourself, Luke!" he roared.

No one did. At least not at first.

"Coward! Face me like a man!"

Again, there was no response to the frustration of Anakin Skywalker.

"What have you done?" he asked, voice trembling with rage. "Why am I here?!"

"Do you really want to know the answer to that question?"

Anakin turned around and there Luke stood, upright and stoic as if the current surroundings did not bother or perturb him in the least. But something appeared off about his expression, a melancholic mixture of regret and guilt. Middle aged lines featured far more prominently, those lively blue eyes, so similar to his own, downcast and filled with immense depression.

"You!" Anakin growled, igniting his blade, running headlong like a mad Reek.

"What you're doing is pointless."

The advice went unheeded as the blue lightsaber swung through nothing and Anakin found himself staring into the same black emptiness as before. The quest for vengeance went unfulfilled as painful memories of his wife continued their taunting.

"It's your fault!" he screamed at the blond. "You took her from me!"

"That's not true."

Anakin wheeled around and tried the same hacking motion again as the blond reappeared. Again it was to no avail.

"She's EVERYTHING! I would go to the ends of the galaxy for my wife! To have her by my side forever!"

Luke looked down and heaved a sigh longer and more fatigued than any before.

"I know," came his simple reply.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Anakin spat as he tried once more to bring his blade down on the traitor's neck. Everywhere Luke popped up, he attempted the same process but found it to be maddeningly impossible to make contact with anything solid.

"It means you are a person willing to do anything to keep the ones they love safe. It is your greatest strength…and weakness."

By this time Anakin ceased the frantic lightsaber waving as it did no good to repeat a process that clearly had zero effect in whatever this world was.

"Anakin, your entire life has been defined by love and fear." Luke now gave a hard stare, unmoving, boring right into the brunette with the blunt force of a Venator Class Destroyer. "The very essence of the Force itself."

He gestured with his right hand and a flurry of images began flashing in Anakin's eyes. Memories…countless memories…ones of his mother, her tenderness and care, singing even after a hard day's work as a slave, playing with friends on Tatooine, the first time he discovered the Jedi and his own abilities, meeting Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, laughing and joking alongside a man he considered as a brother, falling in love with the woman he'd dreamt about since the day she walked into the junk shop…

A single tear dropped from the Chosen One's eyes as he recalled the wonderful emotions and happy times. Nothing could compare to the wedding on Naboo, privately officiated, no guests, but none were required on such a day. For Padme Amidala was the only person, the only woman he needed in his life. The light side of the Force enveloped him in a warm embrace as he recalled every specific detail, every glorious moment spent in the company of those considered his friends and family.

"You care." Luke's voice came in like something over a holospeaker now. "Your love and generosity is unmatched by any Jedi alive."

Happiness gave way to disappointment, melancholy, hatred, and loss as darkness violently shoved light aside. Pain. So much pain. Beatings administered by his first master, abused constantly on the planet he considered nothing less than hell itself, separation from the only person who'd properly administered any kind of care, Obi-Wan's strict lectures, the Jedi's unyielding code, unbearable grief at the loss of his mother…the actions committed after said loss…murder…killing…the dark shadow that always seemed to hang over him like a black storm ready to strike at any moment…

"Fear," Luke said aloud as though reading him like a book. "Fear of loss. Fear of not being powerful enough. Fear of yourself. It is the root of the dark side as love is with the light. The inability to confront and face that fear is what will lead you to ruin…if you do not turn back."

Anakin narrowed his eyes, wishing Luke would stop being so cryptic.

"Turn back from what?"

"Your doom."

This only served to piss off the Chosen One further. Seriously, how hard was it to get a straight answer? How did Luke know everything about his past and more besides that?

"I am done playing these games! Tell me what's going on!"

"I've tried," Luke responded, appearing before him one more time, the lamentation on his tired features more apparent than ever. "Now, I will show you…Father."

"What? What do you mean? What is this place? Why am I-"

The barrage of questions ceased as a flash of white light blinded him once more…

…until he found himself observing what he thought to be another memory. His own.

"What the-"

A tall man, with dark brown hair that reached the ends of his neck raced after a figure heading in the opposite direction: a Togruta nearly eight inches shorter. It was a familiar scenario.

"Ahsoka, wait!"

When she didn't respond, the pace quickened and his voice more urgent.

"Ahsoka! I need to talk to you!"

The now former Palawan relented, stopping and turning to face her now former Master, heartbroken over the decision to leave the Jedi Order.

"Ahsoka," he said with a small pant. "Why are you doing this?"

"The Council didn't trust me. So how can I trust myself?"

She turned away, bitter feelings still quite fresh over the ordeal of being expelled.

"What about me?" Anakin continued to protest. "I believed in you, I stood by you!"

"I know you believe in me, Anakin. And I'm grateful for that. But this isn't about you. I can't stay here any longer…not now."

The hurt and betrayal swimming in Ahsoka's eyes were matched only by her master's broken heart. Neither one of them wanted this outcome. But too much had changed. No matter how badly she desired to return, her intuition would not allow it.

"The Jedi Order is your life. You can't just throw it away like this! Ahsoka, you are making a mistake!"

Anakin continued to plead. Anything to avoid the loss of his beloved Palawan, the one he'd trained for the better part of over two years, the one he nicknamed 'Snips', who blossomed from a snarky youngling to a Jedi more worthy of the title 'knight' than anyone.

"Maybe," she conceded. "But I have to figure this out on my own. Without the Council. And without you."

She couldn't bear to look him in the eye after speaking those words. But for once, Anakin did not attempt to steer her away from the decision. It had been made, for better or worse.

"I understand," he finally said quietly. "More than you realize, I understand wanting to walk away from the Order."

"I know."

It had been the only time either one of them came close to uttering any admittance about his secret relationship with Padme Amidala. Neither needed to say anything more. However, it couldn't change the fate of either person. Ahsoka walked down the steps of the Jedi Temple, never to return, never to look back.

All the while a gaping hole, unfilled and empty, widened within the Chosen One as he watched her go.

Anakin didn't like reliving that particular memory. The time he'd almost lost Ahsoka Tano. But what was the point? She'd come back after all, right? Luke convinced her to stay.

"Well that was a waste of time," he scoffed. "And that didn't actually happen."

Guiltily, he realized that Ahsoka probably would have been ashamed of him at the moment. Joining Sidious was not something he wanted but it was the only way…the only way to save Padme from dying, to save the Republic, to finally achieve everything denied to him by the Council.

Right?

Another memory came into view, this one completely unfamiliar.

He and Obi-Wan were on what looked like a Trade Federation flag ship, battling against the elegantly caped Count Dooku, taking on both of them at once, just as he had many times in the past. The Chancellor was strapped to a chair, as though held against his will.

Obi-Wan rushed up the stairs, slicing his way through two Super Battle Droids in order to assist his companion in subduing Dooku. But the Sith had other ideas. Kicking Anakin to the side, he lifted the Master up in the air and tossed him against one of the railings.

Seconds later, the same platform collapsed onto Obi-Wan's unconscious body, partially obscuring his lower half.

This only served to enrage Anakin further as a hard boot struck Dooku directly in the sternum, fearlessly engaging him alone on the bottom level.

The duel became increasingly intense as the Jedi's blows became that much quicker and the Count forced on the defensive. But what the old man lacked in youth was made up for in elegance. A master at Form II, Dooku twirled the curved hilt of the blade and attempted a counter strike only to be met again by azure blue.

"I sense great fear in you Skywalker," the ex-Jedi practically goaded as their sabers hissed and crackled against each other. "You have hate. You have anger. But you don't use them."

It turned out to be a very poor choice of words. Anakin disconnected and pushed the Count away, the full measure of his fury unleashed in a powerful display of swordsmanship. He continued to drive Dooku back further and further, grunting with tenacity.

As with any duel, one misstep or ill timed move can be costly. Dooku tried to sidestep Anakin to gain a breather, to curb the boy's overwhelming aggression. But he was not fast enough and similar to Geonosis three years prior, a poor attempt at an overheard strike proved to be his undoing. In a matter of seconds, the Jedi Knight blocked said strike, gripped Dooku's arm and in one fluid motion severed both hands.

Indeed, the Count was so shell shocked, he immediately sank to his knees while Anakin deftly caught the red blade in combination with his own, forming a deadly scissor at the neck. The tables had officially turned.

"Good, Anakin, good," Palpatine said with the air of a father congratulating a son for catching a ball. "Kill him…kill him now."

Dooku looked completely flabbergasted as he realized the fullness and ruthlessness of Palpatine's treachery. He'd only ever been a tool. A means to an end. And that end was now his executioner. Words simply would not come out.

"I shouldn't."

Anakin tried to resist becoming a victim of his own fury, ironically responsible for the victory achieved over the hated Sith. All prisoners were guaranteed the right to a fair trial. A Jedi only took life out of self defense. But Dooku had no defense, no means of inflicting any more injury or suffering despite everything he'd done. What would Obi-Wan think? What would the Council think?

And yet he so very badly wanted to cross those blades and end this scum once and for all. After all, he deserved it…

"Do it!" the Chancellor barked in a very un-Chancellor like tone.

Dark whispers of temptation circled around the young Jedi and he obliged them. In a second, Dooku's head went tumbling to the ground leaving only a slumped over body and the smell of charred flesh sizzling in the air.

"You did well, Anakin," came the serpentine praise of the secret Sith Lord. "He was too dangerous to be kept alive."

Regret showed clearly on the face of the conflicted Jedi as he used the Force to free the Chancellor of his binds.

"Yes, but he was an unarmed prisoner. I shouldn't have done that, it's not the Jedi way."

"It is only natural," Palpatine said with a flippant shrug. "He cut off your arm, you wanted revenge. It wasn't the first time, Anakin. Remember what you told me about your mother and the Sand People?"

As the vision faded, Anakin felt a complexity of different emotions. For one thing, part of him agreed with what happened; Dooku did deserve to die for all the atrocities committed on his behalf. But to see himself pent up with all that rage and hatred was deeply uncomfortable. As was Palpatine's grooming, now fully aware the benevolent Chancellor had been subtly influencing his actions for years.

But there was one problem that bothered him above all else: he'd never actually killed Count Dooku.

"That never happened," he said aloud. "None of that happened. I never killed an unarmed prisoner I-"

He stopped, realizing that he'd been prepared to kill Luke moments prior in an eerily similar scenario: unarmed and helpless. It only added to his personal agony.

"I…I'm…" lack of words turned into indignation for Anakin Skywalker. This was all a bunch of tricks. It had to be.

"You're not fooling me, Luke!"

But there was no answer and this time something much more pleasant came into view. The wonderful image of his wife.

"…but the fighting will continue until General Grievous is spare parts."

"I will do everything I can in the Senate."

It didn't take long for the young man to sense a beautiful young woman waiting in the wings for his return. He'd been away for so long, their souls ached for each other. Excusing himself politely from Bail Organa, Anakin threw all caution to the wind and enveloped Padme Amidala in a massive hug, one she returned as well along with a tender kiss.

"Oh, Anakin…"

The loving couple sighed into each other's arms. Anakin took in everything about her, the scent, her perfectly sculpted hair, the beautiful dress…Force he was so lucky. He'd missed all of it.

"There were whispers…that you'd been killed."

Anakin gave a cheeky grin to assure his wife all was well.

"I'm all right. Feels like we've been apart for a lifetime. It might have been if the Chancellor hadn't been kidnapped…I don't think they ever would have brought us back from the Outer Rim Sieges."

He gave himself to passion and began kissing her once more but the more responsible Senator urged prudence.

"Wait, not here."

"Yes, here," he insisted, pulling her angelic face back towards his own. "I'm tired of all this deception, I don't care if they know we're married."

"Anakin, don't say things like that."

He could sense her trepidation but it had nothing to do with any sort of rules or status. She genuinely feared for his life while separated and equally feared that occurring again. But there was something else…something like explosive happiness.

"Are you all right? You're trembling."

There was no mistaking the anticipation within Padme's eyes and body language. She was so nervous about something he worried for her general welfare.

"What's going on?"

"Something wonderful has happened," she whispered, joy alighting her face. "Ani…I'm pregnant."

If anything could make the Hero With No Fear suffer a loss of words, it was the oncoming meteor of fatherhood. At first, it was Padme's turn to feel a bit anxious about his reaction but those fears were soon put to rest.

"That's wonderful," he responded with a beaming, toothy white smile, one reserved solely for his angel.

"What are we going to do?"

Both knew that the prospect of having a child would put an end to any remaining secrecy they'd managed to keep at this point in their marriage. But Anakin didn't care. After the initial shock, warmth flooded his chest at the thought of little ones running around their home. Nothing else mattered.

"We're not going to worry about anything right now, alright? This is a happy moment. The happiest of my life."

Nothing could have prepared Anakin for that little reveal. But it also came with a sense of disbelief. What in the world was he witnessing? Padme wasn't pregnant. Sure they might have talked about having children once or twice in the past but it was not a serious proposition…

It didn't matter anyway…she was gone. Taken from him and with it any ability to have a family.

"You're sick, you know that?" he said aloud, hoping Luke could hear him. "Showing me false images of my wife?! Of possible children?!"

He pointed a finger up at nothing, vowing retribution which suddenly felt like a futile gesture.

"I will make you pay! Do you hear me?!"

Something or someone seemed to have heard him because the scene changed yet again. This time the setting was quite familiar.

Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala were in a familiar scenario: standing on the deck of her luxurious flat within the most upscale district Coruscant had to offer. But the mood was decisively off balance.

'What's bothering you?' she asked him gently as he looked to the side.

Anakin tried to play it off, never one to be forthright about anything too personal.

'Nothing,' he said with a smile that didn't match the undercurrent of anxiousness felt by the handsome Jedi Knight. He lightly touched her Japor Snippet, still dangling around her neck as it always did. "I remember when I gave this to you."

But Padme didn't buy it for a second, her exposed shoulders slumping in slight exasperation.

'How long is it going to take for us to be honest with each other?'

There was only one person Anakin could not lie to and she stood right in front of him.

'It was a dream,' he said reluctantly.

'Bad?'

'Like the ones I used to have about my mother…just before she died.'

Padme knew full well how difficult it was for Anakin to talk about his past, especially the particular aspect. Her voice was gentle and soothing as she continued to ask questions.

'And?'

'And it was about you.'

There was no mistaking it now, the massive wave of fear pulsating through the Jedi's body, how it shone in his eyes. One didn't need to be a Jedi to sense it.

'Tell me.'

Anakin couldn't bear to speak of it any longer, getting up from the seat on the balcony.

'It was only a dream.'

Padme said nothing but remained rooted in her stance, undeterred by whatever the imaginary, ill fated dream held in store. A woman of constitution and unafraid of death, she would not take no for an answer.

'You die in childbirth.'

'And the baby?' she asked, placing a hand on her protruding womb.

'I don't know.'

Padme immediately enveloped Anakin in a hug, echoing his earlier words.

'It was only a dream.'

'I won't let this one come true, Padme.'

The visions steadily eroded Anakin's anger which gave way to confusion. He didn't understand. Padme wasn't pregnant. By the looks of it, this version of her was weeks, perhaps days away from labor. But it also underscored a grisly similarity.

He'd had nightmares about Padme dying not too long ago. Ones that Luke had helped to alleviate. At least before…

"I should have done something," he muttered to himself. "Why didn't I do something?"

Frustration boiled over again as vitriol and resentment towards Luke raced back to the forefront. But the visions again seemed to answer his call once more, leaving little time to be angry.

The tension on display amongst the Jedi Council was quite palpable. No Chancellor had ever attempted to interfere in Jedi affairs as Palpatine had. They couldn't know they were playing right into his hands.

"Allow this appointment lightly, the Council does not," Yoda said in a grave tone he rarely used. "Disturbing is this move by Chancellor Palpatine."

"I understand."

In the center stood Anakin Skywalker, at the behest of the Chancellor, so hopeful he'd be able to receive the recognition so desired.

"You are on this Council, but we do not grant you the rank of master," Mace Windu informed him with an almost disdainful air.

Hope turned to ash as the Anakin took in the words.

"What?"

Outrage welled within the troubled Jedi. He looked towards Obi-Wan for support, understanding, empathy…anything. But his former master sat silently, unable or unwilling to provide that support.

"How can you do this?" Anakin asked, failing to keep his emotions in check against better judgment. "This is outrageous. It's unfair! How can you be on the Council and not be a master?"

Though his voice had only been raised a few notches, to speak out of turn in front of the entire Council was highly inappropriate at best, a disciplinary action at worst. The room already felt quite taut and the outburst only furthered that sentiment among everyone present.

"Take a seat, young Skywalker," Windu said in the sternest tone he could muster, gesturing towards the empty chair.

Anakin, realizing he was out of line, ceded the floor and bowed in apology.

"Forgive me, Master."

He did as ordered but not without noticing Obi-Wan shaking his head. Anakin couldn't know that the disapproval was twofold: at his outburst yes, but also at what the Council was about to ask of him next.

Anger and indignation gave way to yet more confusion on the part of present day Anakin Skywalker. It was a reversal of what actually happened. They had granted him the title of Master without allowing him a spot on the Council. And Obi-Wan did stand up for him in that instance. As had Luke.

"This doesn't make any sense," he uttered aloud.

Visions of the Jedi Council slowly dissolved and shifted into something else entirely. An unfamiliar setting unknown to Anakin. Except there he was, at the Galaxies Opera House of some kind. But he couldn't recall ever going to an opera nor at the behest of the Chancellor.

"Anakin, you know I'm not able to rely on the Jedi Council. If they haven't included you in their plot, they soon will."

"I'm not sure I understand."

The two men sat alone together, the pretense of watching said opera all but dropped as the mood suddenly shifted.

"You must sense what I have come to suspect. The Jedi Council want control of the Republic. They're planning to betray me."

"I don't think-"

"Anakin…search your feelings…you know, don't you?"

The Chancellor's words practically invited suspicion and discontent. Even then Anakin wasn't totally willing to give the game away even as his loyalties flubbed.

"I know they don't trust you."

Palpatine gave a noise of disapproval as though the reply validated his theory.

"Or the Senate, or the Republic, or democracy for that matter."

"I have to admit, my trust in them has been shaken."

The old man seized upon that comment immediately.

"Why?"

Of course, the Sith Lord already knew the reason, which made it all the more easy to sow further distrust in the conflicted Jedi.

"They asked you to do something that made you feel dishonest, didn't they?…They asked you to spy on me, didn't they?"

Anakin's jaw dropped. The Council had never asked him to spy on the Chancellor. What was this? It had to be some kind of mean illusion.

That he guessed so easily clearly flustered the young man.

"I don't uh…I don't know what to say."

"Refer back to your early teachings. All those who gain power are afraid to lose it. Even the Jedi."

"The Jedi use their power for good," Anakin argued stubbornly.

"Good is a point of view, Anakin," Palpatine continued to wax poetic as though he were a philosopher. "The Sith and the Jedi are similar in almost every way, including their quest for greater power."

"The Sith rely on their passion for their strength. They think inward, only about themselves."

Anakin's response was firmer than his earlier ones, affirming which side he saw himself on.

"And the Jedi don't?"

"The Jedi are selfless, they only care about others."

A silence followed by nascent clapping from the audience temporarily interrupted their conversation. For Darth Sidious, the boy clearly was not ready to turn. Not yet. But Anakin remained divided, oh yes, very divided. After all, given the choice between saving his wife and honoring the Jedi Code, he knew which one the boy would take. Which gave a perfect inroad to the next topic. The next seeds of doubt yet to be planted.

"Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise?" he asked.

When Anakin confirmed he had not, Palpatine continued, knowing the boy wouldn't be able to resist becoming ensnared by the tale.

"I thought not. It's not a story the Jedi would tell you. It's a Sith legend."

Anakin didn't comment meaning the boy was listening and so continued.

"Darth Plagueis was a Dark Lord of the Sith so powerful and so wise, he could use the Force to influence the midi-chlorians to create…life. He had such a knowledge of the dark side, he could even keep those he cared about from dying."

The Chosen One's attention was strict and upright now.

"He could actually stop death?"

"The dark side of the force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural."

"What happened to him?"

Palpatine's voice had become low and silky, seduction disguised as a story in the form of a seemingly kindly, normal politician.

"He became so powerful, the only thing he was afraid of was…losing his power," he said with a nod to the theme of their overall conversation. "Which eventually of course, he did. Unfortunately, he taught his apprentice everything he knew, then his apprentice killed him in his sleep."

The Sith's mouth curved in an upward smile, relishing the memory with sickening, psychopathic glee.

"Ironic, he could save others from death, but not himself."

Anakin didn't bother to ask how a seemingly non Force sensitive Chancellor knew such a grisly story or suspicious motive behind it. All he wanted was the answer to one question.

"Is it possible to learn this power?"

Palpatine turned and by now the smirk was gone.

"Not from a Jedi."

Anakin felt increasingly uncomfortable. This was the same story Palpatine had told him days earlier. However, what he just witnessed was…much more overt. His counterpart much more willing to shrug aside any broader questions. Of course, he wanted to save Padme above all else, but…how could he not have seen it?

No, it wasn't his fault the Jedi were an arrogant bunch bent on preserving their Order…their power as opposed to doing what's right for the galaxy.

"I did believe the Jedi were good once. I did believe we were selfless," he said to himself, feeling just as divided as the man in the vision. "Until they betrayed me and the Republic."

A voice echoed out from the darkness.

Who betrayed whom?

Before Anakin could respond the scene changed again and he again saw himself with the Chancellor, this time in his office.

"Chancellor, we've just received word that Obi-Wan has engaged General Grievous."

"I can only hope Master Kenobi is up to the challenge."

Palpatine gave a small smile but it did nothing to change or assuage the mixture of confusion, fear, and resentment currently brewing within Anakin Skywalker who immediately began pacing.

"I should be there with him."

"It's upsetting to me to see the Council doesn't fully appreciate your talents," he said soothingly. "Don't you wonder why they haven't made you a Jedi Master?"

"I wish I knew," Anakin replied. "More and more lately, I feel like I'm being excluded from the Council."

There was a pause and the Chancellor looked as though he knew the exact words the Jedi would say next.

"I know there are things about the Force they're not telling me."

"They don't trust you, Anakin," Palpatine said softly, with a well practiced look of heavy sympathy. He closed the holo report and began guiding the young man towards his private chamber.

"They see your future, they know your power will be too strong to control. You must break through the fog of lies the Jedi have created around you."

The time had come. Each carefully crafted talk, advice, and ploy led to this very moment for the Sith Master seeking to woo the ultimate apprentice.

"Let me help you to know the subtleties of the Force."

"How do you know the ways of the Force?" Anakin asked curiously.

"My mentor taught everything I know about the Force…even the nature of the dark side," Palpatine spoke in a hushed whisper that oozed reverence.

Anakin stopped walking and placed himself directly in front of the Chancellor, giving a hardened stare.

"You know the dark side?"

"Anakin, if one is to understand the great mystery one must study all its aspects, not just the dogmatic, narrow view of the Jedi. If you wish to become a complete and wise leader you must embrace…a larger view of the Force."

Palpatine's words were carefully chosen, still presenting a benevolent understanding figure to Anakin while simultaneously playing to his innermost desires. Press the boy too hard and he might attack.

"Be careful of the Jedi, Anakin," he continued as the two men began circling each other. "Only through me can you achieve a power greater than any Jedi. Learn to know the dark side of the Force and you will be able to save your wife from certain death."

That smile did not match the rising evil within Palpatine's eyes and Anakin knew it. The pieces of the puzzle connected.

"What did you say?"

"Use my knowledge, I beg you!"

Anakin whipped out his lightsaber and pointed it directly at the Chancellor.

"You're the Sith Lord!" he snarled.

Palpatine gave a nervous gesture with his right hand, stepping back from the blade. A lightsaber was perfectly hidden up his sleeve but he did not want to use it. Not now with so much at stake. If the boy attempted to strike out, it would ruin everything.

"I know what's been troubling you," he said, the tone uncharacteristically calm for someone on the verge of being slain. "Listen to me, don't continue to be a pawn of the Jedi Council."

Anakin did not lower his blade but refrained from killing the now confirmed Sith. A part of him, larger than he cared to admit, wanted to hear more.

"Ever since I have known you, you've been searching for a life greater than that of an ordinary Jedi. A life of significance, of conscience."

In a daring, even foolish gesture, Sidious turned his back to Anakin, testing him to see what he might do next.

"Are you going to kill me?"

Anakin raised the blade, but again, did not strike.

"I would certainly like to!" he spoke in a tone indicating betrayal, hurt, and rage…so much rage.

"I know you would," Sidious whispered, drinking in the raw amount of emotion emanating from the boy. "I can feel your anger…it gives you focus…makes you stronger."

But the Chosen One controlled that impulse, remembering that to kill an (seemingly) unarmed person, no matter how evil, was against the code of the Jedi. Against everything he supposedly stood for. And yet, the other half screamed, not merely to be let loose, but to ask this Sith Lord his secrets…why kill a person with such knowledge?

"I'm going to turn over to the Jedi Council," Anakin stated as calmly as he could, switching off the lightsaber.

"Of course, you should. But you're not sure of their intentions are you?"

"I will quickly discover the truth of all this."

Sidious resumed his grandfatherly demeanor, knowing that the young Jedi, despite his words, was just as conflicted as ever.

"You have great wisdom, Anakin," he complimented. "Know the power of the dark side. The power to save Padme."

The words were designed to be impactful at the moment of parting. For they would have devastating consequences.

Anakin tried to ignore his own tug of war within himself. He hated the idea that Palpatine had been playing him all along, that there was no true way to save Padme. That everything he fought for, everything she fought for, was completely in vain. Not that it mattered anyway. Even if Palpatine was a Sith Lord bent on taking control of the Republic at the expense of the Jedi, what good was any of that?

She was gone.

It's Luke's fault, a voice whispered as it continued to push, crooning and encouraging him to take vengeance. He lies…the Jedi lie.

Sidious manipulated you, another voice said, gentle but also firm in its conviction. He had no intention of helping you achieve anything.

Anakin yelled out in anguish, unable to resist the call of the darkness yet unable to wholeheartedly embrace the light either. He'd never felt so confused, so lost. As though every past experience was rendered obsolete. A war within himself that tore at the very fabric of his own identity.

Jedi, Sith, friend, foe, good, evil, husband...

"Father."

There was that word again. The one Luke continued to call him. He turned around and saw the blond standing there once more, mouth set in a grim line. For a split second in time, or however time worked in a place like this, neither said anything.

"Tell me the truth," Anakin said at last. "What were those things I saw?"

"Memories," Luke replied simply, his voice suddenly sounding a bit scraggly.

"Who's?"

"Yours."

Anakin had been afraid of that answer. Or perhaps, he just didn't want to hear it.

"But that's impossible. I don't remember doing those things."

"It's what happened the first time," Luke answered cryptically as ever. "Before you pledged yourself to Sidious...as you were about to do as I blew open his office doors."

"I-" Anakin began scrambling as befuddlement gave way to indignation. "I didn't pledge myself to anyone."

"You weren't about to embrace the dark side to save Padme?"

"No. That's not what I…" Luke finally caught him in a web of contradiction, one he could not wriggle out of. He had been willing to become what he once swore to destroy. Attempting to ignore the rising shame, another question came to mind. "…what do you mean the first time?"

The blond only gave a sad look as he began to fade once more back into the darkness.

"I am not just your offspring, Anakin but a result. A result of what happened when Darth Sidious ruined our family…when you fell into evil."

"Luke…LUKE!"

He wasn't angry this time but desired more answers. Something. Anything. He didn't want to feel lost or alone any longer. Just the truth about who he was and what the hell was going on.

"Don't leave me!" he pleaded. "I would n-"

He paused so desperately wanting to say the words 'I would never' but in essence that couldn't have been less true. The ugly reality was already laid bare. And it only became worse. For the memories returned in all of their brutality.

"No, no, NO! YOU WILL DIE!"

Lightning emanating from Darth Sidious was caught, albeit barely, just in time by Mace Windu's amethyst blade. The Sith did his best to over power the Jedi Master but failed to do so, and that terrible dark side energy reflected right back at him.

"He's a traitor!" Palpatine screeched.

"He is the traitor!" Windu yelled back, groaning under the shear strain.

Anakin watched as the reflected lightning began to ebb and scar away at the Chancellor's face. Formerly smooth and well kept skin harrowed into ugly, pale crevices.

"I have the power to save the one you love! You must choose!" Sidious tempted even in the midst of a full barrage.

"Don't listen to him, Anakin!"

The outward battle moved inward, symbolizing the very competition for the soul of the Chosen One. Destined to either bring balance…or great destruction. Anakin had never felt more torn.

Windu's discipline and determination became too much for Sidious to overcome as he fell back in exhaustion, moaning and begging for Anakin to assist.

"I'm too weak..I…I can't hold on any longer. Help me! Help me!"

But the Jedi Master held no such sympathy or mercy.

"I am going to end this!" he announced, blade now hovering just over Palpatine's heart.

"You can't!" Anakin cut in. "He must stand trial."

"He has control of the Senate and the courts! He's too dangerous to be left alive!"

Sidious continued to beg, feigning frailty and vulnerability in front of his desired pupil.

"I'm too weak.. don't kill me, please."

"It's not the Jedi way," Anakin continued to insist. "He must live!"

But Windu was in no mood to hear such an argument. Everything he knew and loved boiled down to the Jedi Order. And he'd do anything to protect it. Even if it meant ending an unarmed prisoner.

Real fear arose in Sidious's glowing yellow eyes. Despite his acting, there was no recourse or defense to muster against Windu's blade.

"Please don't."

"I need him!" Anakin tried one last time.

Alas, Mace Windu committed one final error. Unable or perhaps unwilling to sense just how desperate Anakin was to save his wife from death, he swung forward.

"Please don't!"

"NO!"

A flash of blue and sizzling hiss later, Windu's hand had been cut clean off and he began screaming in agony. Darth Sidious wasted no time in taking advantage.

"POWER!"

The Sith Lord ensured the long hated adversary suffered as much as humanly possible, roasting his body with as much lightning he could muster before ruthlessly tossing him out the window to an unceremonious death.

"UNLIMITED POWER!"

Collapsing onto the chair, panting heavily, Anakin immediately expressed horrified regret at his latest actions, barely processing what had just occurred.

"What have I done?"

But Darth Sidious seized the moment, recognizing straight away just how vulnerable Anakin was…and that he could never go back.

"You are fulfilling your destiny, Anakin."

By now Palpatine's kindly, welcoming features had been supplanted by a twisted, scarred mass of gray with gleaming yellow eyes. The true face of malevolent, malignant darkness. One that the brunette could no longer refuse as the offer came a second time.

"Become my apprentice. Learn to use the dark side of the Force."

Suddenly, Anakin Skywalker realized just how far he'd fallen. The responsibility of Mace Windu's death fell squarely on his shoulders. He was a betrayer now. A scourge. They'd kill him once they found out what happened.

"I will do whatever you ask," he responded through labored breaths.

"Gooooooood."

There was a marked change in the Chancellor's voice. As if an ugly, hideous creature of evil personified had taken the place of the formerly magnanimous, charismatic politician, no longer needing to hide underneath a benevolent guise. The fair mask was removed, revealing the true monster within.

"Just help me save Padme's life. I can't live without her."

"To cheat death is a power only one has achieved but if we work together…I know we can discover the secret."

It was all Anakin needed to hear. Falling to his knees, he spoke the fateful words.

"I pledge myself to your teachings."

"Good…good."

The triumphant smirk on Sidious's face was matched only by the vast overwhelming power that permeated throughout the room. Inhaling, as though breathing in that power equated to a euphoric drug, the Sith Lord basked in the glow of victory. Skywalker was now his to mold.

"The Force is strong with you," he crooned in a deep baritone. "A powerful Sith you will become. Henceforth, you shall be known as Darth…Vader."

It was a name chosen with complete spontaneity in contrast to the years of careful planning Sidious orchestrated right up to the very moment. But the name fit as perfectly as the glove covering Anakin's right forearm. An all powerful moniker for an equally all powerful, unstoppable Dark Lord. The reborn Sith echoed this sentiment.

"Thank you…my master."

The scene faded but not the horror that began consuming Anakin's soul. Shame and disgust filled him as he took in that dreadful memory. To witness himself commit such acts and then bow in servitude was surreal and more than a bit disturbing.

He wanted to protest, to voice the conviction that he'd never murder Master Windu (even if he was a sleemo sometimes). But in one sense, he already had.

I tried to kill Obi-Wan, I tried to kill Luke…I fell on my knees to Sidious already…

How? How could he have been so foolish? So short sighted?

"I didn't…I didn't do any of these things," he tried to rationalize. "I didn't kill Master Windu. I didn't…I swear…I-I-I…."

Words failed as excuses finally ran dry. Whatever he did or did not do felt irrelevant. Anakin Skywalker was not only capable of such acts, but fully embraced the dark side. Something unthinkable even weeks prior.

"I'm not evil!" he yelled to the inky blackness which stood maddeningly silent. "I swear! This is a mistake…I made a mistake but I can fix it!"

Fate clearly said otherwise as it continued to cruelly taunt him with more images of unspeakable atrocities. All committed by the corrupted Chosen One.

Darkness swept over Coruscant.

All was quiet except for the sound of plastoid-alloy boots echoing across the courtyard leading to the entrance of the Jedi Temple. The boots of clones, armed to the teeth, belonging to the 501st Legion- led by one man, hooded and cloaked. Aided by the night, the silhouette of Darth Vader loomed over the ancient building like a specter of death and destruction.

Not a man said a word. Not a sound. As if entranced by some spell.

Anakin's throat tightened in anticipation of what was about to happen.

A battle of indescribable magnitude began. Clones, once brothers and companions to the Jedi, began shooting every single one on sight regardless of age. Blaster fire seared the walls. Detonators exploded, damaging priceless art and architecture. Men, women, and children began screaming as they were all gunned down one by one. Some of the older, experienced masters and knights attempted to fight back but to no avail. The newly christened Sith apprentice gave no quarter.

"Stop!" Anakin shouted at the image of himself as it ran through Master Drallig through the stomach. "STOP!"

But it only got worse.

Anakin entered the chamber of the Jedi Council…an institution he once sat on. Now it was nothing more than a shelter for frightened, confused younglings.

But upon entry, they quickly gathered around the fallen Jedi, unaware of what he'd become…

"Master Skywalker, there are too many of them. What are we going to do?" a little boy asked.

It dawned on Anakin what his counterpart was about to do and he tried to prevent it.

"No…no, no, no, no! What are you doing?!"

An azure blade ignited and it began cutting them to pieces in a terrible display of cold blooded slaughter. No one was spared. Not a single soul.

The present day Anakin Skywalker turned away when he realized he was powerless to do anything to stop the insanity. He couldn't make sense of the carnage. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Saving Padme was one thing but the murder of innocent children?

"No! I will not look! You can't make me!"

His words proved to be an exercise in futility as the next memory almost made him vomit.

On the fiery planet of Mustafar a man and a heavily pregnant woman ran towards each other in a loving embrace.

"I saw your ship."

Anakin picked Padme up and swung her round joyfully in a show of affection. But it failed to belay the concern each of them felt for the other.

"What are you doing out here?"

"I was so worried about you…Obi-Wan told me terrible things."

Anakin's tone sharpened.

"What things?"

"He said…you turned to the dark side. Killed younglings…" she could say no more, the rumors too disturbing to speak of.

"Obi-Wan is trying to turn you against me," Anakin said as softly as he could. But there was something…off about that inflection. Something Padme Amidala didn't like or recognize.

"He cares about us," she insisted.

"Us?"

"He knows," Padme said, signaling towards her womb. "He wants to help you…Anakin all I want is your love."

In moments past, it would have been enough. But this version of her husband became increasingly foreign to the Senator as she clung to how things used to be: the Republic, the Senate, her marriage…all remade and twisted before her very eyes.

"Love won't save you Padme," Anakin insisted, a disturbing childlike gleam swelling within his eyes. "Only my new powers can do that."

"But at what cost?" she pressed. "You're a good person don't do this."

She tried to soothe him the way she usually did, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder and massaging lightly. Anything to bring him back to sanity.

"I won't lose you the way I lost my mother," he said before his expression turned arrogant. "I am becoming more powerful than any Jedi has ever dreamed of and I'm doing it for you. To protect you."

Padme pressed herself close to his body, wrapping both arms around his neck, hoping that whatever influence she could exert might break through. Power, politics, government…none of that mattered compared to their love. The family yet to be.

"Come away with me. Help me raise our child. Leave everything else behind while we still can."

She may as well have been talking to a durasteel wall.

"Don't you see, Padme? We don't have to run away anymore. I have brought peace to the Republic. I am more powerful than the Chancellor…I-I can overthrow him. And together you and I can rule the galaxy. Make things the way we want them to be."

Anakin Skywalker didn't know whether to swear or throw up. Who was this person? They shared every physical feature, but that was the only thing they had in common.

And yet would he have not done the same put in the same position?

Evidently, the memory of Padme thought similarly as he saw her back away in horror. Disbelief and disgust filled the brown eyes he adored so much.

"I don't believe what I'm hearing. Obi-Wan was right. You've changed."

"I don't want to hear any more about Obi-Wan," Anakin said as frustration slowly magnified to anger. "The Jedi turned against me...don't you turn against me."

His words, unyielding, laced with greed and megalomania, only served to push his wife further away.

"I don't know you anymore," she said tearfully, voice breaking. "Anakin, you're breaking my heart. You're going down a path I can't follow."

"Because of Obi-Wan?" Anakin asked almost suggestively.

"Because of what you've done! What you plan to do."

But Anakin was no longer paying attention as a familiar presence made itself known on the ramp of the Senator's ship. His old master.

"Stop! Please, come back! I love you!" Padme cried and begged.

But Darth Vader wouldn't hear of it.

"LIAR!" he roared.

Padme also noticed Obi-Wan's presence and began to back away, realizing Anakin thought he'd accompanied her on purpose.

"No! No!"

"You're with him!" he accused, advancing menacingly. "You brought him here to kill me!"

"No-ack!"

Vader raised his hand and began choking the woman he loved above all else, slowly squeezing the life from her body...until a pained breath escaped her lips.

"Anakin," she whispered.

This act alone was enough to trigger present day Anakin into action as he rushed forward to stop this monster, this abomination, from hurting his angel.

"LET HER GO!"

He reached out with his hand and then stopped, realizing with dark irony he'd attempted the same choking technique as his evil twin.

"No…I…" His hands began trembling, looking down on them in disgust.

"Let. Her. Go."

Anakin saw the memory of Obi-Wan descend the ramp and it occurred to him they'd both said the same phrase simultaneously.

"Please," he begged the counterpart who could not hear his cries. "Stop this madness. Just stop choking her."

Vader did so but not before the damage had been done. She fell to the floor, severely weakened by lack of air, taxed by pregnancy and above all…a broken heart. Obi-Wan looked absolutely stonewalled, repulsed that Anakin could do such a nightmarish thing.

"You turned her against me!"

"You have done that yourself!"

Vader's intransigence and rage blocked out any sort of reason or accountability as he frothed like a rabid dog.

"YOU WILL NOT TAKE HER FROM ME!"

"Your anger and lust for power have already done that," Obi-Wan told him bluntly, allowing his cloak to fall on the platform. "You have allowed this Dark Lord to twist your mind until now…until now you've become the very thing you swore to destroy."

"Don't lecture me, Obi-Wan," Vader dismissed with a cruel wave of the hand. "I see through the lies of the Jedi. I do not fear the dark side as you do. I have brought peace, freedom, justice, and security to my new Empire."

"Your new empire?" the redhead asked incredulously. Just what exactly had happened to the boy he trained? The man he practically raised?

"Don't make me kill you."

"Anakin, my allegiance is to the Republic. To democracy!"

It was a mark of just how far Anakin had fallen as he issued his next statement.

"If you're not with me…then you're my enemy."

Obi-Wan stood shell shocked that such words could come out of his pupil's mouth. Like Padme, he did not recognize the man who stood in front of him. Anakin, despite all his flaws, would never treat family or friends in this manner. Which only meant one thing…he was too far gone. No rational argument or plea could change that.

"Only a Sith deals in absolutes. I will do what I must," he said evenly, unclipping his lightsaber.

Anakin did the same as he issued a final warning.

"You will try."

In seconds the battle commenced as Master and Former Apprentice engaged in one last duel.

"No…"

Anakin clutched his chest. He couldn't breathe.

"No…I don't want to see any more."

Staggering, dizzy, and disoriented, it became too much to bear.

"I hurt her. I hurt my angel."

He looked around, keenly aware something or someone was watching.

"Luke," he called out. "Let's talk about this. I am not that man in those memories."

Predictably, the opposite occurred. Luke did not return, instead he saw himself battling against his master and best friend over a boiling river of lava and molten rock. Anakin suddenly felt nauseatingly hot as though the pits of the hellish planet were somehow affecting him too despite not being physically present. He sensed something terrible was about to happen.

Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi. Two friends now foes in an epic battle for the soul of the galaxy…and themselves.

"I have failed you, Anakin. I have failed you."

"I should have known the Jedi were plotting to take over."

It was practically copied from the page of Palpatine's textbook and the redhead attempted once more to get his fallen friend to see reason.

"Anakin, Chancellor Palpatine is evil!"

"From my point of view the Jedi are evil!"

Patience broke like a delicate mirror as Obi-Wan lashed out in frustration.

"Well then you are lost!"

Kenobi ceased trying to reach his former pupil, considering it his duty to defend what was left of the Order he served from those who tried to destroy it. Except that person was someone he once loved…and still did.

Anakin, even as the essence of Darth Vader egged him to tap deeper into the well of power that was the dark side, was unable to do so, the smallest sliver clutching desperately at the old days- when they were brothers serving side by side for the Republic against the Separatists. Force, things had been simpler in those days. Even now, the lost Jedi felt pangs of regret. But he couldn't stop now. He'd come too far. They both had. An inevitable collision course in which one of them would perish.

The duel soon came to the edge of the lava river. Obi-Wan, mind unclouded by darkness or anger, saw the opening and took it- leaping backwards, avoiding a killing blow and landed safely on the top bank.

"It's over, Anakin! I have the high ground!"

But the blind rage and arrogance of Darth Vader refused to listen.

"You underestimate my power!"

Anakin, observing with increased anxiety, understood exactly what Obi-Wan was trying to do. From a tactical standpoint, a Jedi of his master's caliber combined with the unmatched proficiency of Soresu, could not be beat from that vantage point. Only a fool would attempt to re-engage the duel from said vantage point.

"Don't try it!"

As he watched, Anakin's hot nausea turned numb as he surmised that Obi-Wan's warning wasn't merely a call to victory but a last ditch dissuasion to save his fallen brother. His counterpart only had two options: cede the battle or attack from an extremely disadvantaged position. Except pride and arrogance wouldn't let him do the former. Anakin, aware of how he tended to react when someone told him he couldn't do something, easily predicted what happened next. Under the influence of the dark side, it spelled disaster.

"Idiot!" he shouted. "What are you thinking? You can't win!"

But just as before, the specter, the shell of this twisted version of himself could not hear him. Only the lies of his own arrogance.

He jumped. Seconds later, Obi-Wan's blade sliced through flesh like a hot knife through butter and Anakin fell to the ground, missing all but one limb. He tumbled and slid all the way to the edge of the volcanic bank, a victim of his own pride. Shock and horror turned to despair even as the former Jedi Knight reached upward with his only remaining appendage, crying out to be rescued…anything to escape the fires that began to trickle closer and closer.

"Help me, Master!"

When no help came, it sealed away Anakin Skywalker forever. Blue eyes faded to yellow as love and fear were replaced by insatiable rage; the fiery birth of the Sith Lord Darth Vader.

"You were the Chosen One!" Obi-Wan yelled below, hoarse voice full of heartbreak. "It was said that you would destroy the Sith not join them! Bring balance to the Force! Not leave it in darkness!"

Vader continued to struggle and moan. Scraping and clawing the slippery volcanic soil, red blooded hatred coursed through his veins hotter than the lava itself. Upon witnessing his former master trudge up the hill and take his lightsaber, something permanently snapped in the destroyed Jedi.

'He's leaving me,' he thought, bile bubbling in the pit of his scorched throat.

"I HATE YOU!"

It cut as deep as a knife to the stomach. But Vader wanted Obi-Wan to suffer as he suffered. To know that this was his doing. Anything to get back at the man who'd taken everything from him.

It only served to cause more pain.

"You were my brother, Anakin…I loved you."

Culminating the tragedy, the edge of Vader's stump leg caught fire and it quickly raced up what was left of his organic body. Pain…unimaginable pain from the fires of Mustafar consumed everything- skin, hair, clothes- nothing was left untouched. He couldn't breathe, he couldn't move, he couldn't see anything except red, orange, and yellow. The hubris of his own sins.

The only thing the charred Sith Lord could do was scream in agony.

Scream at the unending pain of his seared flesh.

Rage at the indignation of being left like this.

And hatred. Hatred towards his former Master…

Towards his new Master…

At the Jedi…

At himself…

The flames licked at the edges of the memory until it too faded to black, leaving only an unharmed but distraught Anakin Skywalker to take in the violent, unsightly scenes he'd just witnessed. Tears streamed down his cheeks, dripping into the black nothingness beneath his feet. To see himself like that…a mere animal devoid of logic, charity, or love…was just too much.

But that barely scratched the tip of the iceberg. For an epiphany of far worse implications came to light. He may not have done those things personally. But the idea, the fact that he was liable to commit them somehow seemed far more disturbing than anything else.

"I died," he said at last. "I died because I didn't listen and became a monster."

Grief stricken, Anakin called out again, hoping for any sign of Luke. He needed to show him he wasn't going to be anything like that despicable counterpart. He needed to know all wasn't lost.

"I deserve it!" He cried out hoping someone, anyone, would listen. "I betrayed my wife, my Order, my Master…myself! Please, I beg you…just tell me Padme was able to escape and raise our child."

A chill ran down his spine as heavy, metallic breathing began echoing throughout the darkness…it was eerily familiar. He did not like it one bit.

"Hello? Who's there?"

Gazing around, Anakin saw nothing at first, his eyes darting in fright at the horrifying pattern that steadily grew louder and louder.

"Who's there?" he repeated.

Again, nothing. That is until something emerged from the shadows. Something deformed, burned, and unspeakably hideous.

A man, visibly suffering from third and fourth degree burns was strapped to a table…he was also missing three limbs and breathed through a respirator. It didn't take long for Anakin to connect to the dots.

"Wait…that's me? But-but I died! There's no way I...he could have survived that!"

To speak of himself in the third person was odd to say the least, but the grisly setting that played out in front of him outweighed any psychological premonitions.

Slowly, a small group of medical and surgical droids began to appear and they set off to work on completing the final transformation of Anakin Skywalker to something else entirely…something not human.

Metal legs were attached to the ends of blackened thighs as was a new arm to match the original prosthetic on the left side. Dead skin was removed and peeled back. Wounds were cleaned while damaged tissue and blood vessels were restored in order to prevent hypovolemic shock. Internal organs were covered and fortified as a means against sepsis. A control box was strapped to his horrifically scarred chest linked to a breathing apparatus and a heartbeat regulator. No doubt as a result of the volcanic ash damaging his lungs beyond repair.

All the while Anakin watched from above as though given an inside glimpse into some kind of science fiction horror story…except it wasn't fiction. This was real. And even more disturbingly, it was happening to his own body. He felt as though he were in some kind of bizarre dream where time had no sense of purpose or place. An operation of this magnitude and complexity should have taken days.

Instead, he witnessed the horrid, painful transformation take place in what seemed like minutes. A suit, entirely black in color, was made to cover the new prosthetics and injuries suffered on Mustafar, including a built in annunciator, no doubt to amplify his scorched vocal cords.

But the truly frightening moment came right at the end when the only part of the body left uncovered was his face- burned and bleeding at the crown and left cheekbone. A mask, goggle eyed, fish mouthed, short snouted, and horribly angular, was placed over it, followed by an equally repulsive helmet, locking the once proud, handsome Jedi into a prison of his own making. A tomb for a dead man still living…for nobody except his master.

Upon activation, Anakin went cold as the slow, metallic breathing returned.

Luke had been telling the truth all along. The dark sider he faced, the one that caused him so much pain and misery…was himself.

Suddenly, Sidious emerged from the shadows, eager to see if his apprentice had properly survived the ordeal.

"Lord Vader…can you hear me?"

The sound that emerged from the newly created cyborg was as deep and metallic as the respirator pumping oxygen through the lungs.

"Yes, Master."

Anakin began trembling again as it occurred to him this was not a mirage but another memory. His memory.

"Where is Padme?" Vader asked with a tenderness that could not be hidden even by the robotic annunciator. "Is she safe? Is she all right?"

"It seems in your anger, you killed her."

What?!

Vader echoed the same sentiment as shock and horror were discernible underneath that mask.

"I-I couldn't have. She was alive! I felt it!"

The room began to shake as the Sith's pain and anguish could not be quelled. Containers shattered, metal walls dented, medical droids crumpled as though they were paper. As Vader broke free of his restraints and took two clumsy steps forward, Darth Sidious smiled in the background, pleased to see his apprentice's rage and power had remained intact. The rebirth of Anakin Skywalker to Darth Vader was now complete.

"NOOOOOOOOO!"

Anakin suddenly realized he was screaming alongside the monster. The half man, half machine may have been a memory but they shared the same grief. For Vader was him and he was Vader, two men who'd allowed their selfishness and fear to mold them into pernicious symbols of wickedness and hatred. Hatred of many things, but above all, themselves.

Sinking to his knees, the Jedi resumed openly weeping.

"It's my fault. I did this. I wrecked everything. Because of my own stupidity and arrogance, I destroyed the best thing that ever happened to me…I killed her!"

Heaving a tormented sob, he searched around once more for the blond Jedi, hoping he'd reappear once more.

"Luke!"

Yelling only seemed to make his voice sound smaller.

"Come back! Help me! Please tell me that I can change this! That this is not my fate!"

No answer. The silence as cruel and empty as ever.

"How could I have let this happen?" Anakin said frantically, unable to handle the tsunami of emotion that enveloped him in a wave of pure sorrow. "I was a Jedi Knight, I was married to the most beautiful woman in the entire galaxy…"

The semi-permanent lump in his throat throbbed.

"…I was going to be a father. Now I'll never know that feeling."

Father.

The voice came as a flicker, a brief flame before vanishing back into the mysterious ether. But Anakin had heard it loud and clear.

"Luke?"

See what you have made. And it will set you free.

"What's that supposed to mean? I say I understand. I'll do better. I promise…Luke?"

Anakin suspected yet more memories were in store. But he did not desire to see any more, believing the lesson the Force imparted had been learned. What more could it do to haunt him?

In seconds, millions of tiny stars began coating the darkness. The outline of a small moon could be seen against the backdrop of a slightly larger moon…except something that small couldn't be a moon. An asteroid perhaps but it sat completely stationary.

The screeching of multiple fighters of a variety he'd never seen suddenly whooshed past. An intense battle of some kind raged overhead. The kind Anakin was highly familiar with in his time as a pilot and general.

Gray flat lined ships with a circular cockpit were engaged with a kind of model extremely similar to the ARC-170s used by clone pilots. But that's not what caught the Jedi's attention. Vader had returned. Or rather, he had returned.

Strapped in and loaded within the Tier 1 Advanced TIE Fighter, Vader delivered a series of shots, destroying the engine of an X-Wing. It was enough to hurdle the rebel out of air, exploding in a fiery ball, leaving only two to take care of as they attempted their pathetic assault on the Death Star.

True, the Sith still thought the battle station inferior compared to the Force. Then again, what man made phenomenon wasn't? He only had to defend it per the orders of Tarkin and his Master. And doing so would be a simple task. The short work of a few more minutes.

One of his escorts fired on the X-Wing to the left, damaging it to the point where it was forced out of the trench, leaving the two pilots alone and short-handed in their lowly attempt on the most powerful Galactic government in history.

'Fools' he thought to himself as he closed in fast. Despite the restrictive nature of the accursed suit keeping him alive, Vader retained the talent and instincts of a world class pilot. In fact, flying personally brought back just an inkling, a sliver in time where a mission such as this was a joyous occasion, an instance of pure freedom unmatched by anything experienced or yet to be.

But that time was long past. He had a job to do. Time to put an end to the Rebellion once and for all.

Lining the right X-Wing in his sights, he fired and destroyed it with ease. Only one remained which would soon be remedied.

Except there was something about this particular pilot. The energy, the raw power…he could sense it much more keenly in this person whoever they were…it almost seemed familiar.

"The Force is strong with this one."

Watching, almost completely mesmerized by the battle, Anakin crossed his arms wishing nothing but ill on the cybernetic Sith, despite knowing full well who lay within that suit.

"I hope you crash into a million pieces," he sneered.

His thoughts lay with whoever was piloting the rebel fighter, desiring for them to succeed.

Vader pushed such concerns aside and within less than a minute, had the X-Wing in his sights once more. So much for the Alliance.

"I have you now."

Almost as soon as he fired, one of the other escorts blew to bits from an unexpected enemy from above.

"What?!"

An odd, disk shaped fighter, a hunk of junk to the untrained eye appeared out of nowhere. It fired another series of shots, causing the second escort to bump into Vader's personal fighter, sending it spiraling out of control and into deep space.

It was all the young rebel needed. Two proton torpedoes were fired. A massive explosion followed. The Death Star was no more and an incalculable blow delivered to the Empire courtesy of one man.

Meanwhile, Vader managed to regain control of his ship but his head had not ceased spinning. Who was this upstart that held such tremendous power in the Force?

He decided to make it a personal mission to discover the answer to this vexing question.

"I'll be damned," Anakin whistled. "He really did blow up a space station."

Somehow, he felt in his gut there was more to that story. Something Luke had been trying to tell him for a while.

More attuned to this strange realm by now, it did not surprise him when the next memory showed precisely that.

Aboard the Executor, Lord Vader waited impatiently for something, any piece of news about this boy who dared to challenge him. The same rebel who blew up the Death Star and sparked renewed hope for the Rebellion…the one who claimed he'd killed his father.

The lightsaber had piqued his interest like no other. It once belonged to Anakin Skywalker, forcefully and brutally taken by Kenobi. Though now dead, his old master's memory continued to haunt him beyond the grave. He'd given the boy that saber for a reason. But why? Kenobi was no fool and unlikely to part with such an object unless for a specific purpose.

He suddenly heard and felt the bounty hunter return. At long last, precious answers.

"I lost him."

"That is most disappointing."

It was unlike Fett to have failed in a mission. Perhaps this rebel was more powerful than he originally gave him credit for.

"Did you bring me nothing of use, bounty hunter?"

Boba Fett was a man of few words, part of the reason why Vader held an ounce of endearment for the Mandalorian. But what he heard nearly caused his jaw to drop.

"Not much. Just his name…Skywalker."

Vader didn't even pretend to hear the bounty hunter's goodbye. A rush of memory came flooding back in a way it hadn't in years.

Padme's pregnancy, their child, the one he thought dead by his own hand…was alive.

Palpatine lied to him.

Just as he'd lied about so many things.

A fist clenched, hatred and rage contained only by the mere fact that if the viewport window shattered he'd be sucked into the vacuum of space. But it cracked under the strain of the Dark Lord's fury.

"Skywalker," he repeated.

Anakin certainly caught the implication but as it had been with many other reveals, a part of him still did not believe it.

"Luke?" he asked again. "He's my…no, impossible. How…"

Padme had been pregnant in the memory. And despite the awful self loathing ignited by the dreadful images of his counterpart choking her, it left only one explanation. Somehow, someway, she'd given birth before her death.

"No one knows who he is, where he comes from, or his true story," Anakin muttered to himself. "All this time he's been a mystery."

But what if the truth about Luke Ahch-To had been there all along? What if he'd been attempting to do so from the beginning?

'Because I'm your son, father. I am Luke Skywalker. And I've come back fifty years to save you and mother. To set things right.'

No, it couldn't be.

Could it?

The image of a catwalk came into view overlooking a massive reactor shaft. Anakin didn't recognize it. For all the adventures and places he'd been across the galaxy it was impossible to see it all. However, something else immediately caught his eye.

A young man of average build, blond, blue eyed and no older than twenty one or twenty two scaled the catwalk cautiously as though waiting for some wild thing to pop out and attack. He entered the main chamber in hopes that he might escape the monster currently out for his head.

Cold, metallic breathing and the flash of a red lightsaber put those hopes to bed.

Vader struck out, sensing the young Jedi was weakened from their battle. He drove him back, using powerful, hammering strikes to chip away at crumbling resistance.

By now the blond wasn't even attempting to fight, merely dodge and avoid as best as possible.

Anakin watched with amazement. Intrinsically, he knew right away who this person was. A younger version of the savvy, experienced, maverick Jedi he'd served with for almost half a year: Luke.

"He looks almost just like me," he said aloud. "Except for the hair of course…"

'You are beaten! It is useless to resist!'

Vader aimed the crimson blade at his exhausted opponent, who sweat and shook with fear.

'Don't let yourself be destroyed as Obi-Wan did.'

Of course, being a Skywalker, Luke didn't listen, defying both common sense and odds as he answered with a flash of blue, avoided a blow and resumed the duel.

"Get him, Luke!" Anakin encouraged, not caring in the slightest that the man inside the suit was technically him. "You can beat this guy! You said so yourself!"

He would rather have died a thousand deaths than become a cybernetic monster. If Luke had been forced to kill him in the future, so be it.

Luke ducked behind one strike, blocked another, repeated the process and managed to score a hit against Vader which sliced his shoulder, causing a roar of pain. The boy couldn't know that it remained one of the few places that still consisted of flesh and blood but he didn't care. The small victory was short lived. Enraged and completely beyond the initial stage of toying with the rebel, the Sith had enough.

Pressing Luke back into a smaller section of the catwalk, one barely wide enough for human legs, Vader flicked his wrist, twirled the blade around and cut upwards.

Luke screamed in agony as both his hand and lightsaber were severed in one move. He fell back onto the railing, clutching the stump of the lost appendage.

'There is no escape,' Vader growled menacingly as he approached once more. 'Don't make me destroy you.'

The blond slowly edged away from the Sith, who had yet to strike him down.

'Luke, you have not yet realized your importance. You have only just begun to discover your power. Join me and I will complete your training. With our combined strength, we can end this destructive conflict and bring order to the galaxy.'

'I'll never join you!'

"That's right, Luke!" Anakin hollered in approval, unconcerned that no one in the memory could actually hear him. "Don't give up. You can take this chump! You said so yourself!"

In a stroke of irony he realized that a part of him still saw Darth Vader as a separate being despite their shared identity. But more puzzling still, was the outcome of this duel. Luke had mentioned that he took down the dark side user. This bloodied, exhausted, beaten version was in no position to do anything of the sort.

"Where is this going?"

The unvarnished, naked truth rapidly approached. As Anakin witnessed the memory, a voice whispered to him.

This is what I've been trying to tell you

Anakin said nothing, only swallowing with anticipation, unable to look away this time. He didn't want to.

'If only you knew the power of the dark side! Obi-Wan never told you what happened to your father.'

'He told me enough!' By now Luke had backed himself all the way to the edge of the catwalk steadied only by a large metal apparatus at the end. 'He told me you killed him.'

The loathing and revulsion in his voice was juxtaposed by the quiet, soft reply of Vader.

'No, I am your father.'

Anakin went numb again. The final piece of denial broke into a thousand pieces.

"So it's true," he whispered. "He is my son."

But the Luke in the memory clearly was not ready to accept such a horrifying conclusion.

'No,' he said, rising apprehension creeping across his face. 'No, that's not true! That's impossible!'

'Search your feelings, you know it to be true!" Vader declared thunderously.

Luke continued to scream in denial, as though he'd been wounded internally. For it was a wound of the worst kind: that of truth, however ugly it may be.

The Sith's declarations evolved into renewed pressure and recruitment.

'Luke, you can destroy the Emperor. He has foreseen this,' he said, clutching a black fisted glove. 'It is your destiny. Join me and together we can rule the galaxy as father and son.'

The blond, shaken physically and emotionally to his core, looked down the shaft into the black abyss and then into another black abyss- that of his fallen father. A murderer and traitor. Unbeknownst to him, Vader had made a similar speech to the mother he'd never met twenty years prior. In a twist of deja vu, the son was equally as repulsed.

But he wasn't exactly in a favorable position to refuse. The Sith echoed this sentiment.

'Come with me. It is the only way.'

Any other person or Jedi might have taken the offer if only to be spared. Not so with Luke Skywalker. Taking one last look at Vader, he suddenly fell into the reactor shaft, disappearing below while his father looked on helplessly.

He'd been abandoned again.

"For the love of…" Anakin choked on another lump in his throat, confound it all. "Please tell me I didn't kill my own son."

Anxiety and fear were soon dulled by slow breathing and the return of common sense. Of course, he hadn't. Luke was alive wasn't he? Witnessing these memories provided that simple proof.

Warmth began to spread across his chest as the renewed prospect of parenthood took hold.

"I did get to be a father," he said in an awed tone.

That warmth went cold within seconds.

"Luke must have hated me. And I don't blame him. I was…a monster. Why has he been so kind to me this entire time?"

The memories were appearing more rapidly now, leaving less time to ponder. This time Vader was surrounded by an array of military personnel- white armored soldiers, similar to clones but with no added colors and an altered helmet design. Human officers clad in gray and black stood at attention without moving a single muscle. A ship flew into the hangar of an incredibly familiar space station. But it was the presence of Red Guards that clued Anakin in. Only one person retained personnel of that caliber.

"Palpatine," he growled.

Darth Vader knelt for one person, and one person only. A being so old and yet so powerful, his reign of the Empire had gone unchallenged. Very few knew of his true identity as a Sith but they didn't need to. His presence radiated power…the essence of someone who knew full well how to wield it.

'Rise my friend,' the dark figure commanded. Garbed in a black cloak, one hardly discerned a face underneath the hood, but what little could be seen was gnarled, gray, and wizened. A cane gave off the impression of frailty, but it was only a ploy. Emperor Palpatine commanded just as much fear and respect in his eighties as ever.

Vader rose and the two Sith began to walk slowly, speaking quietly. No one dared interrupt anyway.

'The Death Star will be completed on schedule.'

'You've done well, Lord Vader,' Palpatine complimented. 'And now I sense you wish to continue your search for young Skywalker.'

Vader didn't answer right away, only confirming what they both already knew.

'Yes, my Master.'

'Patience, my friend. In time, he will seek you out. And when he does, you must bring him before me. He has grown strong. Only together can we turn him to the dark side of the Force.'

'As you wish.'

Palpatine tilted his head underneath that black cloak and gave a greedy, sinister smile, followed by a familiar evil cackle that echoed throughout the hangar.

'Everything is going as I have foreseen.'

"Why do I have the worst feeling about this?" Anakin muttered to himself.

If he were Luke, he wouldn't go anywhere near that hideous fiend. Devise a plan, pull a fast one, something along those lines. But sell out his own flesh and blood?

Then again, it was hardly the most horrific thing he'd seen throughout these memories, the bar being set pretty low at this point.

Palpatine had not been lying for once. At least not this time.

'This is a rebel who surrendered to us. Although he denies it, I believe there may be more of them in the area. I request permission to conduct a further search of the area.'

The Imperial Officer held up a lightsaber.

'He was armed only with this.'

Vader took the weapon. Luke, surrounded by Stormtroopers and in the midst of enemy territory did not appear frightened or intimidated. He truly had come a long way. Just as the Emperor predicted, he'd been sought out and not the other way around. How ironic after years of futility in capturing the boy.

'Good work, commander. Leave us. Conduct your search and bring his companions to me.'

Father and son began traversing the hallway of the platform, highlighted by the quiet, crisp Endor night. There was much to discuss. But unlike their last major encounter, it took on a more subdued, open approach.

'The Emperor has been expecting you.'

'I know Father,' Luke responded evenly.

'So you have accepted the truth.'

'I have accepted the truth that you were once Anakin Skywalker, my father.'

Vader stopped and issued a stern reminder.

'That name no longer has any meaning for me.'

"Like hell it does!" Anakin shouted, insulted and ashamed at the idea.

But listening and observing further, what increasingly struck him was his son's compassion.

'It is the name of your true self, you've only forgotten,' Luke insisted. 'I know there is good in you. The Emperor hasn't driven it from you fully.'

He turned away and settled on the railing.

'That was why you couldn't destroy me. That's why you won't bring me to your Emperor now.'

Vader said nothing for a moment and then ignited Luke's blade, turning it over in his hands, impressed with his son's handiwork.

'I see you have constructed a new lightsaber. Your skills are complete.' He switched it off. 'Indeed you are powerful as the Emperor has foreseen.'

Luke then said something unexpected. A plea. One that reminded Vader far too much of a person lost to him long ago.

'Come with me.'

Those words. The same as his angel begging and pleading on Mustafar. It was only now that Anakin began to see.

"He's…just like her," he whispered.

'Obi-Wan once thought as you do,' the Sith spoke quietly before speaking with powerful conviction. 'You don't know the power of the dark side. I must obey my master.'

In truth, Vader did not truly want to bring Luke before Sidious. But there was little choice. To try and escape, abandon the Empire, or any other outcome would spell disaster, most likely a painful, agonizing death at the hand of Palpatine, who'd been trying to turn his son ever since the boy's existence became known. It left only one option; to flip his master's plan on itself and recruit Luke to his side before the former happened.

Of course, Luke didn't know this.

'I will not turn. And you'll be forced to kill me.'

'If that is your destiny.'

'Search your feelings father…you can't do this,' Luke appealed once more. 'I feel the conflict within you, let go of your hate.'

Vader's next words were not those of a Sith Warrior, but of a fallen Jedi who'd simply given up on any sort of redemption. A person trapped in an iron maiden of their own making without any means of escape.

'It is too late for me, son.'

He signaled for the guards to take him away.

'The Emperor will show you the true nature of the Force. He is your master now.'

'Then my father is truly dead.'

Luke was led away without fanfare, leaving Darth Vader to stir ever longer and ever deeper within his own conflict. Torn by Luke's words and what they reminded him of- the handsome Jedi Knight he used to be- the Sith Lord bowed his head in shame.

For once, Anakin of the present felt tight lipped. There was nothing to say or that he could say. This black mechanical menace deserved nothing but the most painful death. A just comeuppance for everything he'd done and more besides.

The only solace to be taken was that Luke won. He must have somehow.

Luke and Vader approached the Emperor's throne room. The only sound in the gigantic space was the sound of Vader's mechanical breathing. A deep quiet betrayed a larger sense of purpose, a shatterpoint. Something extraordinary, for good or ill, was about to happen.

Palpatine turned around in his revolving black chair, revealing the putrid ugliness that was considered a 'face'. He gave a smile equivalent to that of a hungry crocodile.

'Welcome, young Skywalker. I have been expecting you. You no longer need those.'

With merely a flick of his finger, he freed Luke's binders and ordered the guards to leave.

'I'm looking forward to completing your training. In time, you will call me…master.'

The evil crooning failed to dent Luke's faith and resolve…at least at first.

'You're gravely mistaken. You won't convert me as you did my father.'

The Emperor rose from his chair and continued his soft, silky whispering upon approach.

'Oh, no young Jedi. You will find it is you who are mistaken. About a great many things.'

'His lightsaber.'

Sidious took the hilt from Vader and analyzed it with a degree of amusement and familiarity.

'Ah, yes. A Jedi's weapon. Much like your father's…by now you must know your father can never be turned from the dark side. So will it be with you.'

'You're wrong. Soon I'll be dead. And you with me.'

But the geriatric Sith only chuckled disdainfully.

'Perhaps you refer to the imminent attack of your rebel fleet. Yes…' he said with a widening smirk at the crestfallen look on Luke's face. '…I assure you, we are quite safe from your friends here.'

'Your overconfidence is your weakness.'

'Your faith in your friends is yours.'

It was Vader's turn to try and move the needle in his own direction.

'It is pointless to resist, my son.'

"Bantha shit," Anakin swore in disapproval. "Don't listen to them, Luke. Not for a second."

He could see Vader and Sidious both had their eyes on the same prize; turning Luke to their cause. But whereas the latter was evil incarnate, the former should have known better.

"I hope he kills you both," he spat angrily, feeling that familiar surge come through again.

Palpatine sat back in his chair with the smugness of someone who'd pulled the greatest trick in the history of the galaxy.

'Everything that has transpired has done so according to my design. Your friends up there on the sanctuary moon are walking into a trap, as is your rebel fleet. It was I who allowed the Alliance to know the location of the shield generator. It is quite safe from your pitiful little band. An entire legion of my best troops awaits them.'

Titling his head, the Emperor's tone turned derisive and mocking.

'Oh, I'm afraid the shield generator will be quite operational when your friends arrive.'

He watched with increased anxiety as Sidious continued to taunt and goad Luke, using the potential destruction of his friends and the Rebel Alliance as a method of stoking negative emotions. Thereby increasing the temptation to use the dark side.

"Just like he did with me," Anakin said aloud, as the parallels of the situation became more and more apparent. "And I gave in."

Even now, the brunette remained conflicted. On the one hand he wished nothing but death on Sidious, the man single handedly responsible for the state the galaxy found itself in. On the other, resorting to violence and hatred to destroy the enemy would be playing right into his hands.

It was a lesson that played out in front of his eyes.

The Second Death Star, as lethal and destructive as the first even without being fully completed, had already destroyed two rebel ships. More were sure to come. The shield generator didn't seem anywhere close to falling and with each passing second, Luke's desperation and anger grew.

'Your fleet is lost. And your friends on the Endor moon will not survive. There is no escape…my young apprentice. The Alliance will die…as will your friends.'

By now Sidious's taunting was visibly affecting the blond who saw no way out or any means of assisting those he loved…all except one.

Blue eyes turned once more at the lightsaber sitting in plain view on the arm rest of the Emperor's chair, something that did not go unnoticed. Nor the hatred within swelling like a dark cloud.

'Good,' the Sith Lord whispered. 'I can feel your anger. I am defenseless. Take your weapon. Strike me down with all of your hatred and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!"

Luke's resistance crumbled at the oral onslaught. Unable to hold back his wrath any longer, he turned, summoned his lightsaber and aimed the killing blow…

Only for it to be blocked by Vader.

The Emperor cackled as the two Skywalkers battled against each other with the intensity of a thousand suns…only this time Luke's skill had increased dramatically. Quicker and tapping into previously unused aggression, the blond drove Vader down the steps, delivering a mighty kick.

Vader grunted in pain but it only served to delight the Sith Master further.

'Good! Use your aggressive feelings, boy. Let the hate flow through you!'

Luke suddenly came back to his senses and switched off the emerald blade, using the light side to calm himself before going any further. He'd been that close to losing it.

'Obi-Wan has taught you well.'

'I will not fight you, father.'

Vader's compliment was genuine, but that did not mean he had given up the battle or his own plan. Not by a long shot. He slowly advanced up the stairs once more, red blade still audibly humming.

'You are unwise to lower your defenses!'

Luke barely reignited his own saber, blocking a succession of strikes before causing Vader to miss entirely. An acrobatic jump into the rafters later and he spoke with renewed faith and confidence. He could sense something else amongst the duel.

'Your thoughts betray you, father. I feel the good in you…a conflict.'

'There is no conflict,' Vader denied emphatically.

'You couldn't bring yourself to kill me before and I don't believe you'll destroy me now.'

'You underestimate the power of the dark side. If you will not fight, then you will meet your destiny.'

Vader sent his saber towards the rafters, narrowly avoiding Luke, causing the structure to come crashing down. The battle between Father and Son continued.

All the while Sidious laughed and laughed.

'Good. Good.'

Licking his lips and swallowing in an effort to bring some moisture to his dry throat, Anakin's heart raced with apprehension and agony as Vader walked past him in the memory.

There was nothing he could do for Luke and it was eating him on the inside. What viable course of action was left? Killing either Sith would essentially seal a path to the dark side…the one taken by himself in a moment of selfish weakness. But failure to do so meant death or some kind of barbaric enslavement.

"He still believes there's good in Vader…in me."

All evidence pointed to the contrary. Despite the pleas, the appeals to family and what tenderness remained inside the half man, half machine, it appeared the cold blooded monster still ruled the consciousness of Anakin Skywalker. The soul too steeped in the flame of Mustafar for anyone to save.

Anakin bowed his head, finally seeing just how far reaching the consequences of his actions were.

"Luke…you must tell me that there's a way to redeem myself. Why show me this if I'm past all hope?"

Then he remembered that Luke had attempted the exact same strategy in their own battle.

'I fought a dark side user once. A person everyone believed to be consumed by evil. But I knew there was good in him…I knew there was good in my father…there is good in you.'

"Luke never lost faith."

'I sense your conflict. I sense you trying to keep the darkness at bay. Remember the people who love you. Remember that you're a good person. Come back…please.'

That faith had not been rewarded in Palpatine's Office. He'd been prepared to end his own son's life. He refused to listen. What hope was there for Luke now?

No whisper or voice came this time. Only the memories.

Vader stalked the shadows underneath the throne room, relentlessly pacing, red blade used as a minor source of light. Of course he didn't need it to sense Luke hiding. More palpable was the fear- so much fear- from the son he coveted.

'You cannot hide forever, Luke.'

'I will not fight you,' the Jedi reiterated once more.

It was Vader's turn to tempt and prod. After all, he himself could not defeat Palpatine on his own. That was the reason of course for pushing Luke so hard…right?

'Give yourself to the dark side. It is the only way you can save your friends.'

Luke tried not to think on that subject, attempting to remember the teachings of Obi-Wan and Yoda. But the rabbit hole went too deep for Vader not to sense it.

'Yes…your thoughts betray you. Your feelings for them are strong. Especially for…'

Not Leia. Anyone but her.

'…sister,' Vader finished smugly at deciphering the pattern. 'So, you have a twin sister. Your feelings have now betrayed her too. Obi-Wan was wise to hide her from me. Now his failure is complete. If you will not turn to the dark side, then perhaps she will.'

'NO!'

Luke's sudden emergence from the shadows caught Vader off guard, one from which he never truly recovered. Unprepared and unbalanced due to his own feelings for the boy, he was slowly pushed back by a rapid series of aggressive, overwhelming blows.

This time the scenario could not have been more different than Bespin. The Sith faltered in the face of a younger, fresher warrior, who's potential had barely been tapped while his was limited by age and a metal suit. But more disturbingly, Luke fulfilled the wish of his father, fighting like he'd never fought before. All for the sake of a sister he would not let anyone touch or corrupt.

Vader kept blocking more attacks but now was permanently on the defensive. He tried going over top even as Luke pushed back in a greater show of strength. Forced backward, he sprawled onto the bridge overlooking the reactor shaft of the great space station, ducking underneath another strike before dropping to the floor, offering meager resistance to his son's onslaught.

Luke hammered away until with a mighty slash, severed Vader's lightsaber hand. Defenseless and overpowered, the Sith offered only his undamaged hand to stay a final blow. Steady, metallic breathing now became haggard and unstable.

And a familiar cackle could be heard as Sidious descended the steps, pleased with the outcome he foresaw.

'Good! Good!'

Luke's blade hovered but otherwise did not move as the Emperor sought to finally win the new crown jewel of the Empire. A new servant to eliminate the old disappointment.

'Your hate has made you powerful. Now…fulfill your destiny and take your father's place at my side.'

Anakin held his breath. This is what that lowly creature wanted all along. Tossing aside yet another apprentice in favor of one he believed to be younger, more powerful or a combination thereof.

But how would Luke react? Vader deserved death…he deserved death. Luke said himself, the dark sider he faced had died. Looking at the defeated cyborg with scorn, hate rose again. Self hatred. The worst kind.

"I know what I would have done," he uttered softly, admitting his own fatal flaw.

At the same time, he didn't want Luke to transform into what he ended up becoming.

It seemed there was no answer to this dilemma. And yet as he watched his son, something changed as his eyes lingered over a black gloved hand.

Luke clenched his mechanical hand and then found himself staring at the very same thing: a smoking trail of wires jetting out from his father's wrist.

This is what the dark side led to. To kill Vader, he would become Vader- little more than a slave to do the Emperor's personal bidding, losing his humanity to a black mass of cybernetic hatred and vengeance.

No, nothing, not even all the power in the world, the power to save his friends and the Rebellion, was worth that.

Switching off the emerald blade, Luke tossed it aside and bravely stood before Palpatine in a show of defiance.

'Never,' he declared. 'I'll never turn to the dark side. You failed your Highness. I am a Jedi, like my father before me.'

The expression of disappointment in the Emperor's glistening yellow eyes turned to raw hatred as his cackling ceased.

'So be it…Jedi. If you will not be turned, then you will be destroyed.'

Anakin panicked as he saw Sidious raise his hands in a familiar gesture.

"No! Luke, duck!"

Too late.

A torrent of lightning issued forth, a dark art the newly declared Jedi had no knowledge or preparation for. Its power was only matched by the excruciating pain felt by the victim. Luke fell to the ground immediately, momentum barely stopped by the rail of the bridge.

'Young fool. Only now at the end do you understand.'

Two more barrages of lightning were sent Luke's way. The Dark Lord would toy with and torture the boy before sending him to his ultimate doom. He relished the chance to eliminate the Jedi in their entirety a second time. Perhaps even more than the first. Whether it be one or ten thousand, it made no difference. The archaic fools did not deserve to exist in this galaxy…his galaxy. Luke Skywalker would be the last to join them.

'Your feeble skills are no match for the power of the dark side,' Sidious hissed.

More lightning, and Luke fell into a prone position, body beginning to smoke from the intense heat.

'You have paid the price for your lack of vision.'

Luke grunted but did not scream, vowing that whatever the Sith threw his way, he'd be robbed of the satisfaction of breaking him. But the lightning became too much.

'Father! Please!'

All the while, Darth Vader had become an afterthought. Injured and exhausted, he rejoined the Emperor's side, witnessing the horrific torture of his only son.

'Help me!'

He did nothing. He stood stock still, taking partial glances at his enraged master, the one who'd attempted to betray him only moments prior.

The latest barrage stopped. However, its cessation proved to be temporary as Sidious couldn't resist offering some parting words. Fully emblematic of the pure cruelty and sadism he employed all his life.

'Now, young Skywalker…you will die.'

A final reptilian smile morphed into a psychopathic scowl as the lightning resumed. And this time, Luke did scream. The Sith had put all of his rage, power, and personal connection to the dark side into the blast. There was no mercy. Writhing and yelling in pure agony, the Jedi called for his father once more.

And Vader heard the cries. Not just Luke's. But those of his past. That of Master Windu, the younglings, every Jedi he'd slaughtered, every friend he'd betrayed.

Obi-Wan's hoarse eulogy for the brother he loved…

Padme's pleas for him to stop…to come back…that she loved him…

Just as his son did unconditionally.

Luke.

His son.

Whom he also loved.

In that planet shattering moment, Darth Vader disappeared forever and the roar of Anakin Skywalker made itself heard. Picking up the hated master with his undamaged hand, he raised Palpatine in the air, all while enduring the unimaginable pain of electrocution.

But Anakin ignored that pain. No force or being alive would stop him from protecting his son. And so he did. With a mighty heave, he threw the Emperor's body overboard, the Sith Master's screams of betrayal echoing all the way down…

…until his body exploded in the reactor shaft with a thunderous boom.

Darth Sidious, the most powerful Dark Lord of the Sith in history, the one single handedly responsible for so much suffering and destruction…was dead.

The Chosen One, thirty five years after Qui-Gon Jinn's prediction, had fulfilled his destiny.

For the second time since arriving to this strange place, Anakin dropped to his knees, but not out of shame or self pity. He was simply amazed.

So chock full of raw emotion and still feeling somewhat punch drunk, the Chosen One almost didn't notice that the memories hadn't ended. Not yet.

Time is running out.

The Death Star remained intact but a mad dash of officers, stormtroopers, and pilots ensued. Some were attempting to escape, some fighting, some unsure of their general direction. Though no one knew it yet, the Emperor's death caused a ripple effect in the Imperial Army and Navy. Something in the air turned against them, even if no one could quite place their finger on it.

Luke Skywalker was more than aware of the situation, however, as he continued to try and drag the weakened, battered body of his father to an Imperial shuttle in order to escape. It didn't even register to anyone that the body was Darth Vader. But the blond knew the truth. Vader is gone, there is only Anakin Skywalker.

He managed to reach the ramp of a standard Imperial shuttle, but the clock was ticking too fast. Anakin's systems were irreversibly damaged beyond repair, the breathing apparatus no longer working properly, the control box circuits completely fried. He only had minutes at most to live.

'Luke,' he said, the once booming voice no longer carrying any bite or menace. 'Help me take this mask off.'

'But you'll die.'

'Nothing…can stop that now,' Anakin said truthfully, knowing his time was at an end. 'Just for once…let me…look upon you with my own eyes.'

The innocence in Luke's eyes could not be completely erased as he obeyed his father's one last request. The helmet popped open with a small hiss, while the mask peeled back the final layer that encased Anakin Skywalker for so long.

What Luke saw could only be described as…indescribable. Handsome features had long been burned away. The face had less color than that of the now dead Emperor. Noticeable burns and partially healed cuts marred it. And yet the most notable aspect was not any of the horrific scarring, lack of hair, or color, it was the eyes…no longer Sith yellow, but their natural, crystal blue.

'Now…go, my son,' Anakin almost had to whisper, his voice being so weak. 'Leave me.'

'No. You're coming with me. I'll not leave you here, I've got to save you.'

Luke's love and affection almost sounded childlike. But Anakin didn't care. This moment, this one moment in time they would share as true father and son, was worth it.

'You already have, Luke. You were right…you were right about me.'

He gave another haggard, labored breath. One of his last.

'Tell your sister…you were right about me.'

And then, Anakin Skywalker gave a bright, beaming smile. One not seen or witnessed for decades. The smile only given for Padme…now given for the one who most resembled her and the faith she never lost.

With a final sigh, Anakin went still and became one with the Force. Mercifully and permanently, at peace.

'Father,' Luke choked. 'I won't leave you…'

Tears fell silently down the blond's face before he finally accepted his father's fate was sealed. Gently ascending the steps with the body in tow, the Imperial shuttle fled the Death Star just before its inevitable destruction.

"He didn't just win," Anakin said at long last after the memory faded. "He saved me. From myself. Just like he's been trying to do all along."

Thinking back from the time they first met, everything began to fall into place- their shared connection, the banter and bonding, how they seemed to know each other's intentions so easily…why Luke took as much of an interest in him as the other way around.

And Padme. No doubt Luke was a Skywalker but the compassion, the kindness, the unshakeable principle and belief shown in his fellow beings- that was every bit his wife. The one he loved above all else.

"Luke," he said, becoming choked up once more. "I understand. Truly, I do. You never gave up on me."

That faith would be rewarded. He would make sure of it. Just as soon as they got out of this place. Somehow, he sensed it was controlled by his son in some way or manner.

But the memories had not quite ended. Evidently, there were a couple more loose ends to solve.

A torch lit a pyre upon which sat the body and suit that formerly belonged to Darth Vader. Surrounding it were hundreds of furry primitive creatures but most notably the members of the Rebellion- Lando Calrissian, Chewbacca, Han Solo, Leia Organa his daughter, and Luke Skywalker, his son.

Under ordinary circumstances, such an occasion would mark victory over a hated enemy, one who'd caused so much death and destruction. But not this time. Anakin Skywalker deserved to be honored for his selfless sacrifice, no matter how deep in darkness he'd wallowed in.

Of course, the real celebration was the demise of the Empire. News reached multiple systems and planets that the Emperor and Vader were both dead. That the Second Death Star and Imperial military were severely weakened and no longer carried the iron fisted control they'd exerted for so long. Calls were already being made to restore the Old Republic, the Senate, democratic elections, and other pinnacles denied to but not forgotten by the younger generations.

That would all come later. For now, Luke Skywalker basked in the glow of peace, justice, and love. Everyone did. The only party that mattered in the entire universe was being held on Endor with his friends and family.

Feeling a sudden presence through the Force, the newly minted Jedi Knight saw familiar faces- the spirits of Obi-Wan, Yoda, and that of his father, now fully rejoined to the light side, there to guide his son when needed or called upon.

Luke smiled and Anakin smiled back. Through their bond, they silently thanked the other and offered tokens of love and care. Even separated by life and death, they were connected together, irrevocably, forever.

Father and son.

Anakin marveled at the scene and raised an eyebrow at the idea of further consciousness after death. He'd have to ask about that a little later. Of course, as evidenced by now, Luke had a reason for everything he did, including this.

For once in his life, the Chosen One chose patience and allowed the final memory to take place without vocal resistance.

What slowly took shape surprised him slightly. There was the spirit version of himself standing next to the version of Luke he'd come to know…at least before he trimmed the shaggy hair and shaved off the beard. The planet he was on looked gorgeous from a purely natural perspective. But Anakin could see just by the expression on the blond's face that all was not well. The once idealistic, youthful innocence had given way to grizzled, scarred cynicism reflected by dress and appearance.

He said nothing and kept quiet as the vision played out.

'I'm sorry for what I said to you.'

Luke sat on the edge of a cliff atop a large rock. It overlooked the western direction of the planet which saw miles upon miles of ocean stretch into the horizon. The smell of fresh sea air abounded and a gentle breeze passed by every so often. But the beautiful scenery could not hide the turmoil currently experienced by the living Skywalker. His father, being a spirit, could only provide so much comfort.

'Sorry? About what?'

'Before I started my training, before I reconnected with the Force, I blamed you for everything that happened- the death of mother, the destruction of the Jedi, the galaxy becoming enslaved to the dark side. It wasn't fair for me to say.'

Anakin gave a sad noise, trying to catch his son's eye.

'You weren't wrong. Those things were my responsibility. I atoned for them. I'm still trying to.'

'But I was wrong to point the finger in one direction,' Luke argued back. 'The truth is, I'm just as at fault for the galaxy being in its current state of affairs. I was supposed to rebuild the Jedi Order and establish the balance that had been missing for so long. Now look at me….stranded…scared…hiding on some rock in the Unknown Regions.'

'You're too hard on yourself.'

'What else can I do?'

'Continue to train,' his father offered. 'You've already made great progress with Master Yoda. He told me you'll be ready soon. Skywalkers don't quit. It's in your blood, remember?'

Luke gave a humorless grunt.

'I definitely got that part from you.'

'You inherited many things from me,' Anakin chuckled. 'However, I'm thankful that your overall character is much more like your mother's.'

Luke chucked a small rock in the sea. He then chucked another one, while Anakin's spirit did the same only using the Force. Both men gave noises of amusement. Competitiveness also ran in the family.

'I wish I'd known her,' he said, the mood reverting back to somber.

'You will, if this method works.'

'I really take after mom?'

Anakin smiled as he recalled his own memories, being a spirit at peace.

'You do. Luke, truth be told, you reminded me so much of Padme, it stunned me the first time we battled face to face. In the end, that's what brought me back.'

'I admit, you were quite intimidating stomping around in that ugly suit,' Luke said honestly. 'But everyone I ever talked to only ever spoke about how amazing you were and how much you cared about other people.'

'I did. And still do,' Anakin said with an affectionate smile. 'But I was also vulnerable, emotionally unstable, and impulsive. You'll find that out too soon enough.'

'I just hope I don't have to see your…alter-ego.'

'You likely will,' the spirit said grimly. 'Or at least glimpses of it.'

'And what should I do, Force forbid, if you go bad again?'

It was an uncomfortable question but a necessary one.

'I have no doubt that you will prevent that outcome.'

'There's no guarantee I'll be able to do it twice.'

'As long as I don't end up in that suit again, I'd consider anything else a win.'

'This is serious, father!' Luke exclaimed, not taking the joke well. 'Who knows where in the timeline I'll end up. Palpatine's plan was years in the making and I'll already be at a disadvantage. What if you don't believe I'm your son? What if I'm too late?'

His father eyed him carefully, his response equally as deliberate.

'You're not just referring to me, are you? You're also referring to my grandson. The one currently trying to 'finish' the work I started as Vader. He's doing a piss poor job, if I'm being honest.'

'I don't know where I went wrong,' Luke said in one of the most defeatist tones he'd ever used. 'How could I spend all that time trying to win you back to the light yet the minute I sensed an ounce of darkness in Ben, I was prepared to do the unthinkable?'

Anakin walked over and placed a gentle, spirit hand on his son's back.

'Luke, if nothing else remember that you are human and not a god. You didn't redeem me because you were all powerful or without flaw. It was your love. It is the purest force in the cosmos. It overcame a person whose soul was practically consumed by evil. It will again. You are the single bravest man I've ever met. A Jedi, a Master, a friend, an uncle, and a source of constant light in a universe full of darkness…you are my son.'

He smiled and looked directly into crystal blue eyes. His eyes.

'Our bond transcends the Force. It will transcend time as well. Keep faith in that and I have no doubt you'll succeed in bringing a brighter future.'

They embraced as tears began streaming down Luke's face.

'Go my son. And may the Force be with you.'

Touched by what he saw and overwhelmed by an increasingly warm, soothing sensation spreading across his body, Anakin Skywalker embraced it. He watched the memory fade as another white flash temporarily blinded him.

And then there was nothing.