Chapter 2
Anakin rested his head against the glass of the windshield mirror of his starfighter. Given that he knew his expulsion, he had been able to gather up a large amount of funds which went into buying food for himself. At the very least, his empty stomach wasn't painful as much, though he knew that it was possible to across the Jedi. In the past three weeks, Anakin Skywalker couldn't help but feel free.
The reserves of his ship lasted a week. Those ready-to-eat meals were small to begin with and devoid of taste. Fortunately, his hindsight and intelligence saved him. Despite what many of his colleagues referred to him as, Anakin was intelligent. The Force was his only ally, preventing him from being carried off into the Jedi Citadel indefinitely.
Despite the need to rest and missing the people in his life, the former Jedi Knight did not regret his decision. Better to rot in freedom than to live in a Jedi prison, being deemed mad and insane like the rest. Right now, he knew he had the potential to match several Masters on the Council, but to the likes of Windu and Yoda, he couldn't rival them.
Ultimately, the Force was all he had left. That seemed to be protecting him now at the very end just as it did on Mortis when Anakin logically should have died. It gave him guidance of where to go for the temporarily long run and to keep himself alive. He was able to infiltrate crowds with a cloak that he'd found and was able to remain hidden.
It was only of a small comfort that the Republic didn't bring up charges on him. That aside, Anakin was deemed a threat to the Jedi and someone who they would fight to bring into custody. Even the Force brutally told him he was not prepared to fight.
He exercised frequently. Although he had a fair number of doubts about going to several planets, the Force hadn't led him astray. He had been able to keep his breathing natural and calm. His Force connection never wavered. The only thing that he'd lacked was his lightsaber.
The Chosen One wasn't to die to some lack of exercise. And the Force appeared to be quite angry with the Jedi right now. Even the Light Side of the Force. Around him, he felt like for once the Light and Dark Sides agreed that the Jedi crossed a line and wouldn't lock their Chosen One away in some cell.
It provided him with the will and determination to continue fighting in this galaxy instead of allowing himself to be captured by the Jedi or die some embarrassing death.
Alarms blared inside of the ship. Lights flared on the dashboard. The ship warned Anakin of an impending event. He looked up to the next planet. The Force - everything seemed to be resolved around that - led him here.
The seismic orb of blue and green awaited him. a tropical world in a remote and relatively unknown corner of the galaxy-a largely void area of space. Its surface was largely covered by oceans dotted by numerous clusters of islands and archipelagos. The planet itself was orbited by two small moons, but one of them was close enough to be visible from the surface, covering a significant portion of the sky.
He pushed himself up, getting a clear point of the world. He scowled as he brought up the galaxy map. According to his coordinates, which dimmed after each passing second, he was at the unknown corner of the galaxy. The Tempered Wastes. He heard about the place but only in passing. Not knowing the name of the planet he was about to land on, Anakin had one question in mind.
"Why?"
It sounded like the Force ensured with one word, "Growth."
This planet Anakin had never been to before was indeed captivating. It was a planet that seemed virgin to the eyes, never inhabiting any lifeforms.
Reaching into the Force, however, it told a different story.
The world was active with life - thousands of animals and plants. Much to his curiosity, concealed beneath the top layer of living beings was a distant signature, like shadows of the past that lingered into the Force. Anakin felt its unique and ancient quality. Both the Light and Dark Sides of the Force transitioned around him, passing through the air.
The ship tottered as it entered the atmosphere. Streaks of fire activated on the wings of the ship as it came descending towards the surface.
Compared to past crash landings, this was nothing. He fought a bitter smile as he remembered Ahsoka and Rex complaining about his landings. One of the planet's enormous oceans grew larger. He'd guessed this would be the last planet that the Force planned for him.
Alarms flared. The ship was on its last leg of life. Systems started to shut down and the lights inside dimmed. There was no time left. Putting the ship down would have to be instantaneous.
He observed the surface for an acceptable space of location. As a matter of chance - the Force sounded like it was laughing - he came through the atmosphere over the temperate north east. The beach beneath him invited a relatively soft and unhindered landing spot. With minimum effort, he moderately lowered the ship.
The jolt that shook the ship effectively destroyed the starfighter. Debris flew off of the ship and into the air and water, onto the sand, and in the cockpit. Anakin's bones tightened. Bruises formed on his body where he collided with the interior, however, he avoided serious harm. When the ship settled, he found his lips quirking.
The cockpit came off. He closed his eyes, relishing the chilling salty air rolling off of the waves twenty feet to his right. Ocean spray cooled his hot skin.
The Force hummed quietly, waiting for him to recover.
The former Jedi sat up. "That's going to leave a mark," he grumbled.
The Force nudged. Anakin didn't comply. It didn't relent.
"I'm going! I'm going. Give me a break." He complained.
"Now!" The Force almost screeched.
He grumbled until his throat tightened.
"Fine. Be that way." Since three weeks ago, even with its assistance, the Force have been a backstabbing banth- "Sorry! I'm sorry!"
The pain in his body reduced slightly. The Force have been incredibly short-fused lately. He couldn't even imagine what things were like for the Jedi. He'd known that he was the Chosen One, destined to destroy the Sith. Given the Force refused to allow him to be dragged off to prison, the former Jedi knew that it was, suffice to say, taking matters in its own hands.
He collapsed on the kaleidoscopic sand. Unlike the deserts he was raised on for the first nine years, the ocean provided him with a soothing coldness. It relaxed him and he forgot about the life he had been living.
Anakin grunted as he pushed himself off of the cockpit seat. The muscles in his arms and legs trembled at first, but he managed to moved up, his hand gripping his side as he shakily moved.
Sweat popped on his skin. The prior Autumn sun still heavily resembled its summer counterpart and was cruel and inhumane. It felt no sympathy for him, siphoning off the little energy that lingered. Still, with the reinforcement of the Force, he pressed on.
An embankment offered refuge. The sand formed a lip where it transformed into a field of long bladed grass. Trees formed out of the sand, spitting their weaker cousins who were incapable to grow in such harsh conditions. At the top of those trees, and what caught Anakin's eye, were bulbous red fruits. He did not have to reach up for them. Gravity brought some down to the base of the tree.
He reached for a fruit within arm's length. Compared to the fruit overhead, it was darker, softer and slightly rotten.
Eat.
Eat.
The Force urged.
Eh, you're the boss. Anakin sank his teeth into the firm part of the fruit and bit off as much as he could. It was entirely sweet but juicy. It was good, better than many things he'd tasted. Right now, the Force was now acting incredibly patient.
When he finished, Anakin reached for more. An hour passed and he ate fallen fruits. Cores lay strewn about like a graveyard of corpses. Red fruit juice stuck to his mouth and neck where it leaked. Having never been a clean eater anyhow mainly due to his slavery background, he couldn't find himself caring even a little bit.
He flipped around, feeling something through the Force behind him. More twigs snapped and leaves snapped underneath the feet of a large, quadrupedal beast. It appeared in a small gap in the trees. Its coat was made of thin brown hair, and its antlers were reminiscent of the trees' branches. Two large eyes stared at Anakin for a moment, then it was gone.
Fatigue began to control Anakin's actions. He felt the exhaustion set it and he laid his head on the small pile of leaves. The food he had eaten refreshed him yet again, however, it was far from enough. When he woke up - he was sure it would come - he begged to find more. For now, he succumbed to the call of rest.
Obi-Wan oversaw the speeder lanes outside of the Council's Chambers. The stream of traffic persisted on like a never-ending river. Even at night they never evaporated, and it was the first time he paid much attention to it.
It was something he caught Anakin doing back when he was a boy.
When he had been told of Anakin's escape he couldn't believe it. He was not the type of man to retreat, not when he fought a battle head on. The Hero with No Fear lived up to his moniker more than any other Jedi during the war. Obi-Wan was certain of that much.
But as he watched the speeders fly by, he pondered what more Anakin kept from him.
Naturally, Jedi harbored their secrets. Everything was attached to them as it was a part of life. Satine, and before her Siri, had been his own for years until he had met them both again. He even admitted to Anakin his feelings about Satine weeks prior. It was what his friend required to hear at the time, and he had been disbelieving to the situation having devolved in such a way.
To make matters worse, the public reception of the Jedi went down even further. Anakin was an incredibly popular man that the lack of The Hero with No Fear came with crushing victories from the Separatists. This garnered them a darker view by both the people and the Clone Army. Even Commander Cody was brisk and curt with him, far more than usual. Clovis was an unpopular figure, entirely disliked. Anakin was a valuable asset to the war effort.
Obi-Wan knew of Anakin's attraction to Padmé-it was difficult not to be. Moreover, he understood that the affection was mutual. What he didn't know was that they were married, that Anakin would allow his feelings to Padmé to blind his judgment to the point where he would beat a man to inches of his life! Where did he go wrong with that boy?!
When Anakin told him of his secret, Obi-Wan didn't know how to feel about it. He sympathized with Anakin as he had wished for those same commitments, however, that life was permitted, forbidden so they wouldn't face the struggles of the Dark Side. The Jedi were expected to follow rules. They were asked to sacrifice their normal lives in order to become better Jedi. What Anakin did violated that contract and broke the most sacred rule of the Order.
Obi-Wan's hands were tied.
He planned what to say to Anakin when they spoke next-when Anakin was in the cell of the Citadel and having situated. In his mind, it would be a calm conversation as Anakin settled with the future of the Citadel. Instead, his former Padawan fled and chose to become a fugitive.
The doors to the chambers opened and closed. Soft footsteps moved over to Obi-Wan at the window.
"Credit for your thoughts."
Obi-Wan glanced at Luminara Unduli, then focused again on the speeders. "I would tell you if I could make sense of them."
"A mix of confliction, disappointment, and telling yourself you could have stopped him."
"You seem to know what I feel very well."
She grinned. "You forget that my own Padawan shattered her vows, my old friend. While Barriss's crimes were much more violent, from her point of view, she was living up to the Jedi Way. Skywalker on the other hand deliberately broke the code, so they are different. I suppose I can only understand so much of what you're feeling."
"I wonder how Anakin could have embraced those emotions. He is aware of what those attachments could do, and he accepted the sacrifice upon entering the Order."
"In my own opinion," Luminara offered, "it comes with his age and upbringing. Anakin Skywalker was raised by his mother who taught him love, affection, and to accept and embrace those feelings. It contradicts what we are meant to be. In that sense, he was never going to be a proper Jedi. Sooner or later, he was going to act on those feelings. In the end, it would have been best to permit his acceptance from the Jedi Order."
Obi-Wan found no problem in her logic. Shmi raised Anakin in a loving but tough home. Suffering was a daily issue as was the affection of his mother. For nine years, he lived under those conditions. At that point, there was no going back.
"We should speak to Padmé."
"We should," Luminara agreed. "Having her side to the story will give us more insight on the situation at hand. We'll have a better idea of what we're dealing with. Perhaps she'll have a better idea where he disappeared to."
"Let's hope," Obi-Wan sighed. "Otherwise, I fear what else Anakin would do."
Arthur's note: And you note the difference from the original story. The Republic unwilling to charge Anakin and viewing the Jedi in a dark regard. In my opinion, Anakin assaulting Clovis wouldn't be viewed too negatively, especially since he'd defended a woman from a man who was closing in on her. It would earn some frowns for sure but not too much as the Clone Wars is going on.
There would be no charges. Also, Palpatine wouldn't allow it. If he did, he would lose Anakin as his pawn because he would feel betrayed, meaning that Anakin wouldn't be willing to join him, so he would have to reduce to torture. Something that Palpatine is definitely willing to do but would take too much time.
You will note the Force is guiding Anakin. Well, now that he is viewed as Jedi's number one threat, the Force would protect him. He has a prophecy to fulfilled after all so it's giving him the qualifications necessary that would allow him to rival more skilled Jedi.
May the Force be with you all always.