Anakin wasn't a big fan of meditation. It didn't come easy to him, and it never had. More often than not he would give up on his meditation halfway through and do some lightsaber training. His form and stance always needed improvement. When he was younger Obi-Wan would discourage him from doing so, because meditation was so important for a Jedi. Eventually, through a lot of trial and error, they had both figured out that running through the katas was meditation for Anakin.
It was second nature to him, and always had been. He moved fluidly, using his lightsaber as easily as though it was just another limb. Because it came so easily to him he let his mind wander as he practiced, just relying on instinct. When he was a child he'd been scolded for doing it out of laziness, but then Master Yoda had bothered to feel his presence in the Force when he used his lightsaber. He had been the one who had realized that Anakin's mind was perfectly aware, and just content and at peace, the way it should be when he meditated.
He was still encouraged to at least try meditating in the traditional way, but for the most part he was allowed to use his lightsaber training as his meditation. That was usually what he was happy with, but sometimes Anakin found himself in a situation where he desperately needed peace.
Usually he could find peace when doing his casual lightsaber training, but he could never manage it when he needed it most. Sometimes his mind would be too full of anxiety and terrible what-if situations. His anger was too strong, and when he was angry when wielding his lightsaber it sometimes made his fury so much worse. Those were the times when he wanted justice, and to punish someone, and doing katas wasn't very satisfying when he wasn't accomplishing anything with it, the way he felt he should.
He had a lot of anger in him right now. He wanted to wring the long necks of every single Kaminoan. This kind of anger made him stronger and more efficient when it came to defeating his enemies, but he wasn't going onto the battlefield today. He needed to play the part of a diplomat.
He was on his way to Kamino . He needed to talk to Shaak Ti. He'd been reading over Dogma's datapad these past few weeks, and Shaak Ti had been doing her own investigations. They would be comparing notes, and they'd be talking to the Kaminoans to try to get further answers.
Anakin was technically doing this without approval from the Council. He hadn't told them what his plans were, because he didn't want to do the whole song and dance. He didn't want to jump through their hoops, and then the senate's hoops, and then finally the Kaminoans hoops.
He wasn't just being defiant because he was impatient and annoyed though. Anakin had thought carefully about this. He'd planned, and replanned, and talked things through with Padmé to get some tips on how to approach this delicately. But he didn't want to go through the Jedi about this, because he didn't know if they would think it as important as he did.
The Council was all busy looking for the Sith. They were finally investigating the Chancellor, but until they figured things out for sure that would be their priority. That was fine. They could focus on that. Anakin would focus on this.
The Jedi had been suspicious of the circumstances around the creation and training of the clones, which was why Shaak Ti had been permanently stationed on Kamino, but other than that they made very little steps to investigate more. The war was their biggest concern, and they didn't want to waste resources and lose such an important asset and ally in the fight against the Separatists. So until it was deemed safe to do so, the Jedi pointedly ignored their suspicions of the Kaminoans.
Anakin was through with doing that, because this wasn't just about an army being created for them. This wasn't about genetically engineered clones. This was about men who had been created specifically to be slaves, and Anakin wasn't going to just stand by and let it happen. Not anymore.
A part of him was desperate to take his lightsaber and slaughter every single one of Kaminoans. It was frightening how tempting it was to give in to his anger and make them pay for what they had done. After all, if they couldn't be bothered to treat the clones like they were living beings worthy of respect and life, then didn't they deserve the same treatment?
But Anakin had played the part of judge, jury, and executioner before. He'd given in to his anger and killed the tuskens that had taken his mother from him. Even now he felt justified in it, but being right didn't take away how wrong he felt about the whole thing. It made him ill to think about how easy it had been to let go of his control and give in to his anger, and how easy it would be to do it again. But there were a few reasons why he wouldn't this time.
For one, Padmé had made him promise to not let things get out of hand. She had seen what destroying the tuskens had done to him, and she didn't want to see him go through that again. He didn't want to hurt or scare her, so he hadn't hesitated to give his word.
The other reason why he needed to remain in control was because this wasn't about revenge. This was about getting justice. For Dogma. For all of the clones. There would be a lot of things that would go into getting justice for them, and Anakin knew that if he killed the Kaminoans he would just be hurting the clones in the long-run.
They needed to make the Republic see and understand the injustices that had been happening in the name of freedom and democracy. Only the Kaminoans truly understood what they had done. Anakin knew what the end result was, but he couldn't testify about the details. The senate and the Jedi wouldn't just take his word for it, and especially not if he eradicated the entire species the way he so desperately wanted to.
The Kaminoans needed to live, because they needed to be tried justly and fairly. The clones would only be given what they were due if the Kaminoans were as well. So Anakin needed to control his anger. He wasn't here for revenge, he was here for answers, and he wasn't going to leave without them.
This wasn't going to be a negotiation. It wasn't going to be a surface-level investigation that overlooked anything that was remotely hidden. Anakin was going to be as thorough about this as he could possibly be, which meant doing things a bit differently than the Jedi would.
He had a plan. He knew the Jedi wouldn't approve. He knew it wasn't the way of the Light. But it was the simplest way he could think of to do what was right. As long as the war had been going on the Jedi had been compromising their oaths and beliefs, and justifying that it was for the greater good. That was all Anakin was doing now. Compromising.
And it had to be a compromise. Not too dark, because he knew where that path led. Not too light, because he wouldn't know how to accomplish what needed to be done. It had to be both, and yet not quite either. Somewhere in the middle. A balance.
"General Skywalker." Anakin took a deep breath and opened his eyes to see Fives looking at him. "We're approaching Kamino." How interesting. They had been several hours away when Anakin had started his meditation. He must have been more successful at it than he thought.
He felt at peace. The anger was still there. It wasn't going anywhere anytime soon, and he didn't want it to. His anger was righteous, and it would serve him well as long as he didn't let it control him.
"I told you not to call me that." Anakin said. "I'm not acting as a general out here."
Fives gave him an apologetic look. "Of course, Sir." At his pointed look, Fives smirked slightly and corrected himself. "Anakin."
He nodded in appreciation and stood up. It was time to make landing preparations. "Thank you for coming with me."
"It's the least I can do." Fives said. There was a familiar pained look in his eyes. "It was what Echo would want." All of Anakin's men knew where he was going and why. Most of them didn't completely understand it, but they trusted him as they always did.
As soon as Fives had heard what he was doing he had begged to come with him. Anakin hadn't wanted to bring any clones with him, because he wasn't doing this as a General of the Republic. But Fives wasn't coming as a soldier. He was a concerned brother, and one who might be able to provide information that neither Anakin nor Shaak Ti would be able to get on their own.
Such as the name of Echo's old instructor from years ago, back when he'd been part of the system that had tried to indoctrinate the clones.
Anakin and Fives went to the cockpit. Anakin got ready to approach the planet and land. Fives sat in the co-pilot's seat and read from Dogma's datapad. Anakin had found so much of the information there very concerning. Fives was able to give a little more insight, because he vaguely remembered when Echo had talked about learning similar things. Fives' memory wasn't perfect, but it was nice to have an idea of how many of the ideas had been around in Echo's time, and which ones had likely been changed or added later.
Landing was as easy as anything. The two of them were greeted by Shaak Ti and some Kaminoans that Anakin didn't know the name of, and didn't want to know the names of.
"General." Shaak Ti nodded at him in respect. "We've been awaiting your arrival."
He really wasn't in the mood for formalities. He wanted to shout and rant, but he refrained. He needed to be in control of himself. He couldn't trust himself to speak, so he kept his mouth shut and simply nodded. It was all he could manage.
"Shall we speak?" Shaak Ti said simply.
Anakin took a deep breath. "I need a little more information first. There's a Kaminoan I need to speak to. An instructor from about five years ago." It was odd. Five years ago didn't seem that long ago, but at the same time it was an impossibly long time to be forced to go through something.
Anakin forced himself to look at the Kaminoans. "I'm looking for someone named Tami Hei." He'd been worried that the name would reveal to the Kaminoans what his motivation was. He and Shaak Ti had agreed that they wouldn't tell the Kaminoans that they were investigating their methods. Not yet.
If the Kaminoans were shocked or concerned by his words they didn't show it. Anakin couldn't even sense their emotions in the Force. They were either masters at hiding their intentions in the Force, which he doubted but wouldn't be surprised by, or they just didn't feel anything intensely enough for him to feel without delving deeper.
"As you wish, General Skywalker." One of the Kaminoans said in that infuriating tone of theirs that wasn't quite monotone, but certainly felt like it.. "We'll arrange a meeting for you." Anakin didn't want to rely on them for anything, but it wasn't as though he knew where to find Tami Hei. If he could get their cooperation, he would take it.
Anakin nodded again, because as much as he was willing to play nice he refused to actually thank these creatures.
One of the Kaminoans, a different one, gestured for him to follow them. Anakin did so, but not before looking at Fives. "Go with Shaak Ti. Tell her anything she may need to know." Maybe he should refer to her by 'Master', but he couldn't bring himself to call any of the Jedi by that title. Not now.
Anakin was led into the city, down the halls and into a meeting room where he was told to wait, and Tami Hei would be in to see him soon.
Normally he would pace the floor impatiently. Waiting wasn't his strong suit. But he needed peace today. He needed control. He needed to be calm, or he'd ruin everything before he even started.
He took a deep breath and sat on the floor. He meditated. He tried to hold onto the peace that he'd been able to find on the ship. He didn't quite get there, but he came decently close. By the time the door opened and a Kaminoan came in, presumably Tami Hei, Anakin felt calm enough that he could address the Kaminoan without losing his temper. He would use it instead.
"You wished to see me, General Skywalker?" Tami Hei approached him slowly. Anakin used the Force to close and lock the door behind them. He wanted this to be a private conversation.
"I did." Anakin said. He would just get right to the point. "I've learned some disturbing things about the way the clones have been trained and raised."
"If you're dissatisfied with our product-" Tami Hei began. Anakin's temper flared.
"Do not call them that." Anakin growled. He almost lost his control. He had to take several calming breaths before he could pull it back in.
Tami Hei was unbothered by his anger. They just bowed and said "Of course." They were trying to appease Anakin, even though they clearly believed he was wrong. He hated them. He really did.
"One of my men learned under you." Anakin said through clenched teeth. "Tell me about the assessment classes." Fives had told him the term.
Tami Hei didn't even blink. "Assessment classes? I am not familiar with that in our curriculum."
Anakin didn't have the patience for these games. He wasn't going to go back and forth about it. He was here for answers, not to do this old song and dance.
He'd asked politely. He'd tried to be civil. If Tami Hei didn't want to give him answers, then he would find them himself. He knew how.
The Jedi didn't approve of looking into people's minds without their consent. They believed that it was toeing a line they should never get close to. Looking into one's mind was one thing, but if somebody was making a point to keep their thoughts private and you force your way in anyway it was seen as incredibly impolite at best, and evil at worst. Breaking and entering was a crime, after all, and breaking into someone's mind was a lot more private than going into their home. Anakin didn't like doing it for his own reasons. But desperate times call for desperate measures. One way or another, he would get answers.
Anakin used the Force to hold Tami Hei in place. They were taller than him, but he still loomed over him. He could feel the Force swirling around him, making him feel, and probably appear, larger than he was.
"No more games." Anakin said. "If you don't tell me what I want to know, I'll figure it out for myself." He didn't give the Kaminoan a second chance. He reached out and put a hand on their head. He breached past the walls of their mind, taking far less care than he had with Dogma and Fox. It didn't take him long to find what he was looking for, and so much more.
This was beyond questionable classes and experimental programs.