Chapter 6 – Confrontation

Author's Note: Just as a warning, I may not be able to release the next chapter next week, so y'all might need to wait on this cliffhanger for a couple weeks. ;)

To Guest: Yay! :D

~ Amina Gila

Fear is one emotion which Sidious always detests the most. Fear is useless. Fear only serves to distract. And he very much does not like feeling fear. He is the Sith Master, a Dark Lord of the Sith. He is above such base, mortal emotions.

And so, he is very annoyed to feel traces of fear as he sits in his office. He is the Emperor now, and today should be a day for rejoicing. It still is, of course, but it has not been quite as successful as he had hoped. He had thought to have Skywalker himself kneeling at his feet, but that has not happened, not yet. When his new, temporary apprentice, Inquiere, told him of the boy's Fall in the Temple, he had felt fear, and he had hated it.

Skywalker is the most powerful of all the Jedi, the most powerful of all Force users, and Sidious has always done his best to cultivate that power by planting seeds of the Dark Side in him. He had known that it was a possibility that the boy would not join him as he planned, so he prepared accordingly, but the facing the prospect of a Skywalker gone rogue, bent on murder and vengeance, driven mad by the Dark Side… it is unnerving.

But Sidious is not stupid, and he already took into account the possibility that his chosen apprentice would Fall before he got to him. And he has prepared accordingly. When the boy comes – for he will undoubtedly come, intent on slaughter and death – Sidious will be waiting for him, and the boy will walk right into the trap Sidious has prepared. If it doesn't work out, fine. He can dispose of the boy and wait for the… other to come to take his place. He has prepared for everything. Everything.

Anakin Skywalker will come, driven by the needs that Sidious knows so well, and when he does, his one and true and only master will be waiting for him.

**w**

The flight to the Senate is… well, it goes faster than Anakin had anticipated, his mind whirling with thoughts and feelings as he flies. He struggles to put aside all thoughts of Padme and Reva and his unborn child. He cannot allow his fear for them distract him at this crucial moment. It is imperative that he focus so that Sidious dies. If Palpatine survives this, who knows how much chaos he will inflict upon the galaxy? His reign has endured long enough. It is time to end it.

Even as he thinks that, a part of him wishes he could go back to his family and leave with them, run away into hiding. But that is his emotional side talking, his protective side, his Light side. It is time for him to reach back to the Dark that had swamped him last night, offering him a power that was his for the taking. With that level of power at his disposal, it will be monumentally easier to facedown the Sith Master.

Except the Dark does not come as easily as he thought it might, and he suspects that is because he is instinctively trying to block it off; it is how he has been trained, and he cannot undo that in the span of a day. It doesn't help that Anakin can't help but think about all the clones who he will undoubtedly have to kill, and he feels guilt for that, because it is not their fault. They did not choose this. The inhibitor chip is in their heads, and Palpatine is holding their strings. But he cannot avoid killing them while protecting himself and taking out Sidious. These feelings, this mercy… they must be crushed, no matter how loath he is to do so.

So, Anakin forces himself to remember last night, forces himself to remember Appo and the rest of his men who he killed at the Temple. He knew each of them, even if not well, and it hurts to know they're dead because of him. But Fives. Fives had been one of his closest friends, and he was killed by his own brothers, by Fox. Perhaps – Anakin can understand why it happened, but nothing can undo the grief that he and Rex shared together, trying to cope with Fives' loss.

And when Anakin reaches for the Dark again, grasping at it with both hands, it comes to him in a rush, humming through his veins, burning him with its fire.

He lands on the platform at the Senate, off to the side, hoping he can get into the Senate without too much ado, but then, Fox himself approaches, raising his blaster when he sees – and recognizes – Anakin. There's only one choice, and Anakin lashes out, clenching the Force around the clone's neck and squeezing. Fox struggles in his grip for a few seconds before Anakin snaps the bones, dropping the dead body to the platform.

That, he thinks with no small amount of bitterness, Is for Fives. Fives, who had deserved so much better than being shot down by a brother.

Last night, when he drew on the Dark, his power had been amplified by all the death and despair. It's not even a full day later, and the stain of darkness from last night is still lingering in the Force, but Anakin doesn't know if it'll be enough. He – he might need to… do something to amplify his power. He doesn't want to think about what that something might be as he pulls his hood over his head and stalks towards the side entrance of the Senate building.

**w**

It takes until early evening, right after sunset, before Obi-Wan finally thinks to go to Senator Amidala's apartment to seek out Anakin there. He knows that she and Anakin are friends, distant friends, and while he is aware that Anakin has feelings for her, he also knows that Anakin has been controlling those feelings. He hadn't thought that Anakin would really go to her apartment to seek refuge, but when he couldn't find anything elsewhere, he came here.

Senator Amidala greets him right inside her living room, expression visibly strained. "Obi-Wan," she murmurs, relief washing over her. "Master Yoda."

He doesn't miss the young girl on the couch; she's clearly a Jedi youngling, and she's clutching black fabric in her hands, the sight of which sends a jolt of… something through Obi-Wan. Is that – is that Anakin's? Casting out with the Force, he can sense the bright residual traces of his best friend, but Anakin clearly isn't here. "Senator," he replies, nodding to her. "I'm looking for Anakin. Do you know where he is?"

The youngling makes a quiet, choked noise, and the Senator looks almost fearful. "He was just here," she admits. "He left, saying he was going after Palpatine."

A wave of icy fear gripes him, momentarily taking his breath away. No. Anakin couldn't possibly do something so stupid and rash on his own, could he? But yes, of course, Anakin would do that. Of course, he would. He's selfless to a fault, and he, not incorrectly, believes that it's his destiny to destroy the Sith. He is the Chosen One, after all, but right now, after having lost everything, Obi-Wan cannot lose Anakin, too. He cannot. He cannot handle it. He – the mere thought is so paralyzing that it's not something he can even imagine.

"He promised he would come back," the child whispers, huddled on the couch, expression scared, "But he's going after the Sith…"

"Follow him, we must," Yoda decides aloud when Obi-Wan is incapable of speech.

"If you go now, you might catch up to him," the Senator tells them, sinking onto the couch next to the child. Looking at her again, Obi-Wan realizes that she's the same child Anakin was protecting when he left the Temple in the security recordings. At least one of the children survived, even if the rest of them did not.

He also doesn't overlook the Senator's rather obvious pregnancy. Anakin? Most likely. When this is all over, he can chew Anakin out then for doing something so rash. But now, now, he has to follow his once Padawan before he gets himself killed.

Or worse.

**w**

Reva huddles on the couch after Masters Yoda and Kenobi leave for the Senate. She's glad that Master Skywalker will at least have backup, but even that knowledge isn't enough to overcome her fear. She's terrified and angry and hurt, and she wishes that this was a nightmare she could awaken from. No matter how scary Master Skywalker might feel – and look – when he's so furious and dark like he was last night, he still makes her feel safe.

To others, he might seem like a merciless soldier who will readily kill anyone and everyone, but to her, he's shown a softer, gentler, more compassionate side. When he's there, it feels like he can stop everything bad from happening, and now that he's gone, Reva realizes exactly how alone she is.

The Force feels empty and dark and wrong, and she doesn't like it.

She clutches the robe closer to her, as if it can somehow offer even a fraction of the protection that Master Skywalker does.

"It will be alright," the Senator whispers to her, touching her shoulder. "Anakin won't be alone. He'll have help, and if anyone can stop Palpatine, it will be the three of them."

Reva only wishes that she could believe that. She's lost too much recently to accept that it will be that easy.

**w**

Anakin's robes are even more singed and bloodied when he finally reaches the outside of the Chancellor's – Emperor's – office. The Dark Side is singing through him, growing increasingly stronger as he approaches Sidious, who is making no effort to shield his darkness anymore. The Force feels of death now, but Anakin doesn't have the mental capacity to regret it. They got in his way. They tried to stop him from going after the Emperor. They brought their deaths upon themselves.

Aside from the newly crowned Emperor, Anakin can feel two of his Red Guards inside the office, so he reaches out with the Force, lifting them both in a Force choke, breaking their necks and dropping them as the door slides open to reveal Palpatine. Seeing him momentarily throws Anakin off-balance, because he looks exactly the same way he did the last time Anakin saw him. It's… off-putting to realize how similar he is, how little he's changed, but it also serves to drive in the point that he's always been Sidious, always been working towards this point.

He might have gotten this far, but Anakin will not allow him to get any further.

"Darth Sidious," he drawls, stepping into the office, lightsabers clenched in his hands. He spins them, pointing the two blades at the Sith Master, "Your reign is at an end."

He is expecting it when Palpatine rises to his feet, lightning arcing from his fingertips towards him, expression hard. "It did not need to come to this, my boy," he says.

Anakin scoffs, blocking the lightning by crossing the two lightsabers in front of him, deflecting it aside, before throwing a powerful Force shove at the Sith. Sidious is hurled backwards, colliding hard into the wall behind him. He falls to one knee, before rising back to his feet, anger palpable.

"Recognize this?" Anakin taunts, twirling the red lightsaber in his left hand, its grip familiar to him. "You should. I am not here merely for myself. I am here on behalf of all of your victims."

"You kept it," Palpatine states flatly, nothing but ice in his yellow eyes.

"It makes me stronger," he smirks as he stalks towards the Sith Master. "It calls to me, to my darkness, and I will never be a puppet of yours like Dooku was."

The Force twinges a warning, as suddenly, Sidious Force jumps across the room, making a break for the hallway, and Anakin can't help but feel a lazy amusement. How powerful is Sidious, truly, if he's already running?

**w**

Days earlier

Anakin rolls over on his bed, finally sitting up, and scrubbing his face, unable to find any rest for reasons that evade him. Maybe part of it is that he can acutely feel the dark, mournful song of an unfamiliar kyber crystal. It's keeping him on edge and reminding him incessantly of what he did. Slowly, he reaches under his bed, pulling the lightsaber hilt hidden underneath. Its grip is… different in his hands. It isn't his, and it never will be, but holding it, it almost feels like it could be, as if there's something he's meant to do with it.

It feels like Dooku, and if he closes his eyes, he can remember every last second leading up the Count's… execution. Because that is what it was. There is nothing else which could properly define what Anakin did. It was execution, plain and simple. It was wrong, and he can't hide from the guilt he feels over his actions.

He ignites the lightsaber for the second time since he's gotten it, staring into the brilliant redness of it, and wondering what might have happened if he had chosen not to follow orders like he did.

Anakin stands, swinging the lightsaber experimentally to test out the balance of it, seeing how differently it responds to him when compared with his own, and even Obi-Wan's. It's different, of course, but it's not too hard for him to adjust to, and he can see how it could suit someone who specializes in Makashi.

Form II has never been Anakin's strongest point, but he knows the basics, at least; he studied them intently after Geonosis, trying to strengthen and improve his own abilities so that Dooku could never harm him again the way he did then.

Inhaling slowly, Anakin shifts into the opening stance of Makashi, bringing Dooku's lightsaber up, and working through the stances. He has to be careful not to damage anything in his room, because he has to do this here, since it's not as if he can go parading this lightsaber in public. He goes through the katas once, slowly, before beginning again, this time moving faster, accustoming himself to the balance of the blade, the shape of the hilt, the way the kyber crystal responds to him.

Somehow, this exercise is soothing, and when Anakin decides to stop, he feels exhausted in a way that might actually allow him to find rest. As he cradles the hilt in his hands, he feels a sharp pang of guilt, one that feels more real than before. "I'm sorry," he whispers as if that could ever be enough to make amends. "It was wrong. I should not have listened. I should not have done it." It does little, and it's not as if Dooku could ever hear it, but for some reason, the kyber crystal's song seems a little brighter as though it's saying, 'I forgive you.'

And Anakin decides to keep on training and practicing with Dooku's lightsaber. He doesn't know why he feels almost driven to make amends, since he cannot change the past, and Dooku does not deserve it, anyway, after what he did. Perhaps, he is merely doing this for himself.

**w**

Palpatine only makes it a couple steps into the hallway before Anakin lunges towards him. The Sith twists around, whipping a lightsaber out of his sleeve, of all places, and swinging to block Anakin's first blow. They take a moment to size each other up before Anakin springs forwards again. No matter how much it will hurt, Anakin must kill Palpatine. He has no choice. The Dark Side is with him, the Force is with him, and Sidious' own power is only boosting Anakin's.

Blue and red meet red as their duel begins in earnest. It's obvious from the beginning that the Sith Master is afraid. He keeps giving way, retreating from Anakin's swinging blades. Which is not to say that he's not good, because he is. He is a good duelist, but he isn't the best duelist. Anakin has seen better, and he doesn't think it's boasting to say that he himself is better.

Their fight is vicious, brutal, and Anakin has long since hidden any regard he had for the once-Chancellor. He will not allow any misplaced affections to stop him. Palpatine doesn't speak, doesn't even try to, as Anakin hammers at his defenses, throwing every bit of the vicious brutality he possesses into the duel, the Dark Side aiding him, giving him strength and power, aiding him where he's lacking or flagging.

He pushes Palpatine backwards down the hallway, and given how narrow it is, especially with Anakin having two lightsabers, the Sith has no choice, but to backpedal, covering himself with a flurry of swift counterstrikes. He is good, but Anakin is better.

Anakin crashes his blue blade against Sidious', trying to penetrate his defenses with his red one, with the lightsaber that once belonged to Dooku. The Sith flips backwards, backing through another doorway, and nearly tripping on the dead body sprawled on the other side. Anakin uses that to his advantage, swinging at Palpatine's unprotected side. He rolls under the strike, reversing their positions and leading them back towards the office from which they just exited.

As Anakin lunges for him again, Palpatine tries to electrocute him, but Anakin bats it aside, Force shoving the Emperor backwards again, knocking him into the wall. He doesn't lose his balance, unfortunately, but it does allow him to duck back into his office where he has more maneuverability.

Unfortunate, because the closed space of the hall had been working to Anakin's advantage.

Their duel continues, Sidious flipping and jumping, constantly moving around, which Anakin suspects is meant to tire him out so that he starts flagging and making mistakes. How unfortunate for the Sith that his power is Anakin's power, that his darkness is becoming Anakin's. He is only feeding Anakin as his fury and hatred mount.

"You could have had everything, and you threw it all away," Palpatine rages in between blocking the strikes Anakin is raining on him. "For what? An Order that never cared for you? That mistreated you? That is gone?"

"I," Anakin snarls back, "Stand on the side of life and freedom. You are death and slavery, everything to which I have devoted myself to destroying."

The duel pauses for a moment as they glare at each other. Finally, the Sith's yellow eyes narrow. "So be it." And then, he springs forwards with a cry that jars Anakin's brain but doesn't make him falter when he is one with the Force.

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