Authors Note: Hey Everyone, hope you all are doing alright! Make sure to let me know your thoughts. More chapters coming soon! Enjoy!! Lots of Love - Lorna :)
Life was seeping out of Obi Wan. Anakin could feel it as he choked the man. Still Anakin continues and forced Obi Wan backward until Obi Wan's back was arched painfully. The majority of Anakin felt guilty for doing this to his master, but the part of him in control relished the power he now wielded. Obi Wan gasped, gaging on air that flowed weakly into his lungs, his grasp on Anakin's hand tightening in desperation. Obi Wan kept his lightsaber away from himself, fighting against Anakin's strength. Little did he know how useless that was, Anakin didn't want to use the lightsaber anyway. Anakin could feel Obi Wan's grip slackening on the lightsaber and shift any remaining strength to prying Anakin's hand away.
With a terrible strangled noise, Obi Wan eyes started to flutter and his legs gave out. Anakin never planned to kill Obi Wan if it wasn't necessary, merely incapacitate him but he suddenly found that he was done. He released Obi Wan who fell unceremoniously, gasping and choking on much needed air. Suddenly, the hot confines that they had been fighting in seemed tortuously small and Anakin's breath hitched. The force screamed with Darkness and malicious intent. Being so connected to the force seemed like a curse at the moment. Anakin fell to his knees clutching his head furiously. Words jumbled around his brain along with new horrible memories. It was too much, even for him. The horrible searing darkness he didn't want, the feeling of foreboding that Palpatine had given him, the claustrophobic room he felt as though he was melting in and the horrible noise of Obi Wan trying to recover from being strangled to the brink of near unconsciousness.
Anakin was not yet a dark sider in anything but words. Palpatine had delayed Order 66 for Anakins return and the Jedi were still alive, for the most part. Even the seperatists leadership had fled before he had arrived, someone must have tipped them off. The dark and light swirling around inside him was borderline painful. Anakin was to caught up in literally everything else to realize Obi Wan had recovered and sat up, staring curiously at him.
Obi wan was no fool. Anakin easily could have killed him him that strangle hold, Obi wan had been a mere moment from losing consciousness. The edges of his vision were turning horribly black and an awful feeling of airiness was clouding his brain, his grasp weakened uncontrollably and his legs refused to support him any more. Anakin was the only thing holding him up now and his consciousness started to flee. He was ready for the relief that passing out would give him, if nothing else, but even as this last thought was leaving his mind he could breathe again.
His lungs burned with desire as they greedily took in more air than he could control. He chocked and gagged as he dragged in breath after much needed breath. His eyes watered from the stabbing pain in his chest as lungs expanded and contracted painfully and his heart thumped around eagerly in his chest. It took minutes, much longer than Obi Wan would have liked, to recover. His first thoughts were centered around confusion. Why had Anakin let go? That wasn't how he was taught. Why was Anakin doing this? Where was he?
With wide eyes he scanned the room, quickly finding the man. He was right where he had been when Anakin was choking him, hand tightly gripping his head as though in pain. His eyes were shut tightly and he was rocking on his knees a little, cheeks flushed and feverish. Using the force to retrieve his own lightsaber, Obi Wan crawled toward his padawan warily, expecting an attack. Anakin wasn't normally one for mind games of that sort, but Obi Wan didn't really know what he was capable of now. Obi Wan got close enough to be within reach of Anakin but still nothing changed. He used the force to pull Anakin's lightsaber to him, unclipping it from his padawans belt. At this Obi Wan was sure something would change. Anakin would react and the fight would resume, but nothing changed other than Anakin's slight jolt when the lightsaber unclipped. Seriously doubting that this was an act now, Obi Wan reached out to apprehend the shaking man. The moment that Obi Wan grabbed Anakin's arm though, Anakin instantly recoiled, coming out of his sickened trance.
Obi Wan was surprised by how feverish someone could feel by a simple touch. Anakin's skin felt clammy and way too warm to be healthy. It was already so hot on mustafar anyway that Anakin had to feel absolutely awful if he was feverish. Maybe out of habit, maybe because some part of Obi Wan believed that Anakin's fall was not all it seemed, Obi Wan reached out in the force to Anakin and what he was greeted with was horrendous. A thousand sensations assaulted him as he reached out. The feeling of soothing light combined with the fires of darkness, created the most unbearable balance between healing and torture. In addition to the splintered force signature, Anakin was assaulted overwhelmingly by guilt which only made him sicker.
The force, his regret, even all the fighting he'd been doing contributed to how sick Anakin had gotten. It must have come all at once, everything finally spiraling out of control. Obi Wan could feel Anakin's nausea, the painfulness of being overheated but still freezing, even the claustrophobia that was attacking him. Obi wan withdrew a little relieved he didn't have to experience that first hand anymore.
"Anakin." he said softly.
Anakin looked at him with feverishly unfocussed wide eyes, for just a moment before he groaned and closed them tightly. Obi Wan stood up a little unsteady. Black dots started to wander in his vision but he pushed them back while he waited for a moment to stabilize. With a brief look around, he found where they had travelled to get here. If he could get Anakin, then they could walk back to the ship with minimal difficulty.
He walked toward the rocking man, kneeling beside him.
"Anakin?" He didn't respond. "If you can stand up, I can get you back to the ship and get you some help."
At that Anakin perked worriedly. He abruptly shook his head and stood up.
"No thanks," he replied callously. He looked worse for the wear but he didn't wobble as he stood. "I really don't feel like being a prisoner today. I just- I'm not going to fight you, just go back to the council and tell them whatever you want." He sighed. "And- and," he added with a small hitch, "take care of Ahsoka and Senator Amidala."
Obi Wan looked at him for a moment. "No Anakin, I'm not just going to leave again. The last time I did that everything changed and I'm not going to let that happen again."
Anakin looked at him, face tight with pain. Obi Wan could almost feel the tortuous darkside burning him only to have the light side patch him up to fight a new wave of fire. That was how it was when Obi Wan had first entered Anakin's mind and he suspected that that was how it would feel right now.
"Obi Wan, master, please." Anakin groaned a little, "I don't -please just walk away."
"Are you going to kill me Anakin?"
Anakin looked aghast at even the idea.
"You said you weren't going to fight me, will you hold to that?"
"Yes." Anakin replied quickly.
"Then," Obi Wan continued, moving toward his padawan "let me do this."
Anakin looked confusedly at his master when Obi Wan put his hand up to his face mustering the force when he withdrew to take Anakin with it.
"No Obi Wan…" Anakins voice faded off into a blank stare.
"Yes Anakin. "Obi Wan replied a little smugly, proud that he had been able to influence Anakin even in the slightest. "Come on."
Anakin nodded mutely and started to walk slowly forward.
Obi wan sighed, "quit fighting it Anakin, walk faster."
At that Anakin's speed picked up and they made it back to Obi Wan's ship safely. Leading Anakin to the small med bay in the ship, he sat down on the sterile, cold metallic bed that was provided. Obi Wan cuffed his hands carefully to the bed allowing enough room to move and lay down but not enough for him to wreak havoc in any way.
"Sorry for that, but given the situation I figured safe rather than sorry was the way to go." Fiddling around his small med bay, he located the device that the council had given him for this mission. It was modified by them to allow a person only a small window to the force when it was in place. It was dangerous, of course, because that meant said person had very little ability to defend themselves from force threats but it was a risk that needed to be taken. It was a small device that attached to the very top of the neck, base of the skull area. On Anakin, it would probably be unpleasant at first because he was so strong in the force, but it would prevent him from being a threat to Obi Wan while he was near.
"Anakin, turn your head."
Eyes blank with the force suggestion, he mutely turned.
Obi Wan carefully placed the device underneath Anakins hair and turned it on. He immediately withdrew his force presence from Anakin, who sharply turned to meet his gaze.
"That was low." Anakin ground out, face red with anger and fever. "I don't want to be your prisoner Obi Wan. I kept my word and- ahh!" He groaned miserably.
Obi Wan watched with a melancholy expression. He knew what had caused Anakin's pain, though it was obvious Anakin didn't. He grabbed the back of his head moaning and ran his hands around where the chip was. Once he found it, Anakin looked at obi wan with a scathing look only known as betrayal.
"You're cutting me off from the force?" Anakin growled out.
"Yes." Obi Wan replied, "for my safety and yours."
"My safety?" Anakin asked seethingly. Obi Wan could see the fluctuation of Anakin's force shifting darker. But just as Obi Wan had expected the inhibitor stopped any growing force.
"Ahh!" Anakin gasped out "kriff that hurts!" He tried to take a couple steadying breaths as he clutched the area of his head attached to the chip. As a minute or so passed, Anakin seemed to wilt and calm a bit.
"Yes Anakin, your health. The force fluctuations within you are torturous, don't deny it." Obi Wan shot him a glance. "I know, I've felt it."
Anakin looked at Obi Wan with a little less heat. "You felt it? You were in my mind?"
"Yes padawan," Obi Wan responded softly. "I reached out to you earlier through our force bond."
"It still exists?" Anakin asked himself softly.
"It's still there as it's always been." Obi Wan replied for him.
"He told me-" Anakin faded off. "I didn't think it existed anymore."
Obi Wan glanced over the man. The first thought he had was, Anakin looked exhausted and sick, but he looked peaceful like the war in him had finally faded away for the moment.
"Do you feel better Anakin?" Obi Wan asked.
Anakin nodded tiredly.
Anakin remained sitting upright and Obi wan reached out to feel his forehead.
"You're feverish. Probably dehydrated too. We should probably get some water in you." With that he tossed a bottle of water over to Anakin who sipped it meagerly.
"I'm afraid I can't do much for the fever right now." Obi Wan said regretfully.
"Doesn't matter, I'll make it." Anakin responded. A long pause permeated the room as Obi Wan move quietly around efficiently prepping the ship for take off. He sent R2 to takeoff the ship and put it into hyperspace toward Corasaunt. R2 had relayed that the heat and poor conditions of Mustafar had damaged the hyperspace engine and that the trip would take a while. By the time Obi Wan had returned, Anakin had finished the water bottle and laid down quietly. He wasn't asleep, but he was a little out of it. Obi Wan sat on the edge of the med bay bed.
"The trip is going to be awhile so I hope you're comfortable."
Anakin gave him a look.
"Well, comfortable enough," Obi wan amended. He noticed how after ever couple seconds Anakin would flinch and tense. "Are you still in pain Anakin?"
"Not really," Anakin replied quietly. "The inhibitor is still adjusting I think. It just-" he sucked in a sharp pained gasp and then released it- "does that every once in a while."
Obi wan looked unconvinced but let it go for the moment. It was only once Anakin had very sharply took in a breath and tensed so much his muscles shook that Obi Wan made to help. Grasping Anakin shoulder gently Obi Wan whispered small reassurances to the man until the episode was over. Anakin groaned miserably as he exhaled a tense breath. They waited a moment in silence before the next one came. It was less intense than the last one and the next was even less than that. Eventually Anakin tiredly waited with Obi Wan for the next one to come and it didn't.
"I think it might have finally adjusted." Anakin replied. Feverish sweat glistened on his forehead. There was a small pause before he added thanks.
"For what?" Obi Wan asked confused.
Anakin didn't reply for a moment. Not leaving he finally replied.
Obi Wan smiled just a fraction. "I shouldn't have left to begin with. You're exhausted you should probably try to get some rest. It might help with that fever."
Anakin nodded a little bit before he faded off.
Obi wan got up to see hyperspace for a moment and to talk to R2, before he too dazed off.