"Where's the female prisoner?"

"No status on her location! She must have escaped-"

"Well hurry up, then! We can't afford to let her go-"

Ahsoka panted and sprinted, trying to stay out of the eyesight of the various Purge Troopers running around her.

Just then, she accidentally banged her ankle against the wall and let out a faint grunt of pain.

The Purge Troopers immediately whirled around, pointing their blasters at her.

"There she is!"

Ahsoka ducked and jumped, using the Force to evade the blasts that they fired at her. Unfortunately, she did not have a functioning lightsaber on her to deflect their blasts with. All she could do was try to avoid getting hit.

Please, please let me just make it to Obi-Wan's cell.

"The female Jedi prisoner! She's here!" One of the troopers yelled.

More Troopers immediately came running, all of them starting to shoot at her. Ahsoka looked down at the staircase and made a split-second decision, hoisting herself over the railing and jumping down. Immediately, the whistling sound of twenty blaster bolts went off behind her.

Ahsoka cried out as she felt one of them hit her right in the lekku, but managed to pull herself together and landed with her legs splayed out and one hand palm down on the floor. Once she hit the ground she immediately broke into another sprint, weaving and turning down a corridor. Before the Purge Troopers stationed there could react, she used the Force to grab one of their blasters, set its mode to stun and shot it at the rest of them. By the time she reached the doonium wall at the end of the corridor blocking Obi-Wan's cell, about thirty different Troopers were tailing her.

"Stop right there! We have you cornered!"

Twenty-two...twenty-three...twenty-four, Ahsoka counted, using her finger to estimate the range. No. That's wrong. It has to be twenty-one, she frowned. Otherwise they'll be within the range of the explosion. But then, it might not be enough to break through the doonium...

"Surrender now, or you will be apprehended!"

If I throw them at thirty-degrees...and if I create a big enough Force Shield...then I might be able to avoid any casualties...

"On the count of three! One, two..."

Ahsoka squeezed her eyes shut, opening her mind to the Force and willing it to work with her.

I am one with the Force, and the Force is one with me. I am one with the Force, and the Force is one with me.

"THREE!"

Thirty blasters aimed at her. Ahsoka froze and raised her hands into the air, feeling a chill run down her spine as if she had been here before.

"Drop your weapons!" the Trooper closest to her shouted, pointing his blaster directly at her face.

Ahsoka hesitated for a moment, then slowly lowered her hands.

But instead of dropping the lightsabers, she turned around and tossed them at the wall.

There was a loud sound, the strange echo of something falling apart as it was blown to pieces. Like the sound of a star dying, at least how he always imagined it. He shuddered and moved away, haunted by its dying scream. It was as if he could hear the cries of a million souls calling out to him through the Force, demanding vengeance as their lives were destroyed before his very eyes. He covered his face and buried his heart in the darkness, unwilling to look upon them, unable to face the fate that he himself had thrust upon them. There was nothing but anger, and grief, and pain.

But something bright was breaking through the darkness. Something warm and pure and strong, a welcome light upon his damned soul.

"Wake up," a female voice called as someone nudged at him. He felt a faint poke at his side, but he still did not stir. "Come on, wake up. It's late already."

He rolled over, groaning. Below him, the bed was soft and comfortable. Too comfortable to leave, in fact. "Leave me alone," he grunted.

"Well, I'm sorry, but there's no time. You have to get up now, or suffer the consequences."

"I don't want to."

The woman next to him laughed as if she was already used to these sorts of antics. Although his eyes were shut, he could feel the faint warmth of sunlight pouring through a window and onto his face. As he buried his face further into the pillow, trying to drown it out, he felt a gentle hand on his forehead. Instinctively, he leaned into the touch and allowed the woman to brush back his hair.

"Please, Ani. The kids are already up."

He frowned, opening his eyes and sitting up.

Across from him was a beautiful, brown-haired woman with round cheeks and doe-shaped eyes. She smiled, and the sunlight brightened by just a fraction.

"Have you finally decided to join us, sleepyhead?"

Anakin grunted non-committedly.

Padme laughed softly. "Good boy."

Anakin stared up at her, taking in everything about her. He watched as she leaned in close to his face, long brown hair flowing over one shoulder. She smelled heavenly, too, like a field full of flowers. As soon as she got closer than he was expecting, he suddenly felt nervous and inhaled sharply.

"It's a good thing I have you. Today's a busy day for the Senate...reelections just started, you know. I expect you to take on your fair share of the housework."

Anakin frowned. "I don't see why we have to waste a perfectly good morning by waking up so early." He reached out with his hand and pulled up the blanket, turning over on his side though not facing away from her completely. Padme sulked, clearly miffed.

"I don't see why we have to waste a perfectly good morning by sleeping in late," she retorted, sitting up. He reached out and absentmindedly grasped a handful of hair, relishing the feeling of letting it run through his fingers. Padme retaliated by violently tousling his hair, causing him to yelp in protest.

"Come on," she said, tugging insistently on his collar. "Let's go take care of the twins."

With that, she stood up and walked away. Anakin also heaved his body out of bed and stood up, following after her slowly. His legs felt as if they were made of lead and moving through a pool of water.

Why does everything feel so strange? He wondered to himself.

Padme disappeared into a room and he felt his chest seize with panic, suddenly concerned that she might not come back. But she reappeared just moments later, holding two bundles of blankets in either arm and rocking them gently.

"Here," she said. "Hold them for me, will you? They just woke up."

Dumfounded, Anakin reached out and allowed her to place each one of the bundles in his arms. He froze up, worried that his robotic hand might accidentally grip too hard and crush them. They seemed so small, so fragile, as if anything might cause them to break into pieces. But Padme just smiled at him reassuringly, as if she could read what he was thinking.

"Don't worry," she said. "They're tougher than they look. One of them bit me just yesterday while I was feeding them," she joked. "Try and guess which one."

Padme laughed at her own joke, the sound light and pleasant like a ringing bell. But Anakin was too absorbed to respond. He stared in awe at each of the infants, trying not to shake as he supported their weight with both arms.

"Aren't they beautiful?" Padme asked. "Look, she has your eyes," she said, gently pulling aside the blanket so he could look at the baby girl.

Anakin wanted to look down, to see if what she was saying was true, but suddenly he felt his stomach drop with dread. He instinctively stepped back, moving the bundle out of Padme's reach.

"No," he said fearfully.

"Huh?" Padme asked confused. "What's wrong?"

"No," Anakin shook his head, suddenly feeling a chill run down his spine. "Stop," he panted as the air suddenly dropped in temperature around them. "Get away from me."

"Anakin, you're scaring me...did I say something? Are you angry at me?" Padme asked, walking closer to him.

"Stop!" Anakin shouted.

Padme froze and Anakin glowered at her angrily. "Anakin, why do you always have to do this? I told you, it's not a big deal-"

"Stop," Anakin squeezed his eyes shut and thrusted the bundles back into her arms, eliciting a gasp. "I can't do this anymore. You're not real," he hissed.

Padme frowned, confused. "What do you mean, I'm not real?"

"You don't exist," he hissed, "You're just a figment of my imagination. A cruel nightmare."

Padme narrowed her eyes at him, crossing her arms. He turned away.

"Anakin, talk to me. Look at me."

"No."

"Anakin," she said angrily. "Look at me, now."

He covered his face in his hands and squeezed his eyes shut. He could not bring it in himself to reopen them.

"Anakin!" Padme screamed furiously.

Finally, he shakily lowered his hands.

"Look at me," she growled, her face now pale white and lifeless, completely devoid of the rosy glow that he adored so much when they were alive. "Look at what you've done to me, to our family," she cried. Tears of blood poured out of her eyes and streamed down both cheeks, and her arms were both shaking, barely holding onto the children she was carrying.

"Padme, stop!" He cried, running towards her and trying to take the children from her, but she let out a bloodcurdling scream as if she was still in agony.

"You did this to me!" she snarled. The two bundled blankets in her hands unfurled and fell to the ground, completely empty.

Anakin covered his ears and let out a cry of pain as he fell to his knees before her. Padme towered over him, furious and unforgiving.

"I'm sorry," he croaked hoarsely, but it was too late.

"You will pay for what you did to us!" she wailed. "Do you know, how many times I've cried myself to sleep over you? Do you know how many times I've endured the pain of one night over several lifetimes?"

"I'm sorry, Padme, I...I..."

"Give me my children back!" she screeched. "What did you do to them? Where are they?" she demanded tearfully.

"I didn't-"

"Leave!" she howled angrily.

Anakin gasped, feeling a sharp pain in his chest. He tried to reach out to her but he was suddenly pulled back and fell roughly onto the ground. Panting, he scrabbled to his knees and tried to stand up only to find himself face-to-face with none other than his former Master.

"Obi-Wan," he gasped. "Please, just let me...I have to talk to her..."

"You may not," Obi-Wan said coldly.

Anakin stared down at the lightsaber pointed at his throat, panting slowly. "Please, Master, I don't want to hurt anyone...I just want to talk..."

"You cannot talk to her, Anakin, because you do not deserve the right to!" Obi-Wan snapped. "All you have ever done is bring us pain. You have already dragged us down into your darkness with you. How much more misery do you wish to inflict upon us? How many more lives will it cost?"

"I-"

"No," Obi-Wan replied, his face cruel and unyielding.

Anakin stopped. He felt his body tremble as Obi-Wan and Padme both looked at him as if he was not even human to them. He tried to step closer, but something pulled him back. "Please," he begged, "Let me just-"

Suddenly, he felt someone tugging at his arm and he looked down.

The face of a small Togruta child stared up at him. Although he did not quite recognize her, something about her face was extremely familiar. The dusky orange shade of her skin, the pale white forehead markings and the irregular dark blue stripes on her lekku all reminded him of something long gone. Someone who he had also buried deep within his heart on the day that he died.

"Master," she said slowly.

Anakin flinched, startled.

"Master Skywalker, what are you doing?"

Her eyes were wide with fear, and her small legs began to tremble. Anakin tried to walk closer to her, but she backed away immediately.

"Ahsoka," he started to say. "I-"

Just then, Ahsoka's lip trembled and she squeezed her eyes shut, turning away from him. Anakin faltered, unsure what to do. He turned helplessly towards Obi-Wan and Padme, but there was no sympathy in their eyes, only disgust.

"This-this isn't what it looks like," he stammered as Ahsoka began to weep fitfully. "I'm not-"

"Anakin," Padme said, "What did you expect?"

"I didn't-"

"You should have known that something like this would happen."

The Togruta child stopped crying and suddenly went silent. She stared at him and her eyes grew narrow with hatred. Then, she drew herself up to her full height and Anakin backed away as she marched towards him.

"My Master could never be as vile as you," she said suddenly, drawing up her height. Anakin shuddered and ducked as she withdrew her two sabers and swung at him, no longer a child or the worn-down woman who he had imprisoned but an angry teenager. The same age when she had left the Order.

"Ahsoka, please, stop this! I don't want to fight you!"

"I don't CARE!" Ahsoka screamed, slashing her saber at his head. "You were supposed to protect us, to save us! Why did you lie to us?"

"I did save you!" Anakin cried out.

"Lies!" Ahsoka snarled. "You trapped us, that's what you did!"

"Would you rather by trapped by me, or by the Emperor?" he demanded, losing his patience.

Ahsoka opened her mouth and wailed loudly. Anakin immediately covered his ears and shrunk in on himself, disturbed by the haunting sound. But Ahsoka did not stop her death scream. As he cowered before her, small hands seized at him, grabbing his robes and yanking cruelly. He opened his eyes and felt his heart stop in his throat as swarms of Younglings surrounded him, their expressionless eyes boring directly into his soul as they clawed at him.

"This is your fate, Anakin," Ahsoka spat coldly.

"This is what you have brought upon yourself," Obi-Wan said sternly.

"This is what you are," Padme said quietly.

Anakin gasped as the Younglings' grip on him tightened, pulling him down with them. Together, Ahsoka and Obi-Wan unsheathed their lightsabers and advanced on him, their blades vibrating dangerously.

"Now, you must accept where your Path has led you."

Anakin growled, fighting back against the Younglings' grasping hands as the lightsabers' glowing blades drew closer to his throat. "You would strike me down like I was nothing to you?" he demanded angrily.

"I don't know you anymore," Padme said.

Anakin snarled and unclenched his hands, feeling the power of the Force flow back into him.

"Fine then," he snarled. "Have it your way!"

He stood up, throwing the Younglings off of them and seizing the lightsaber right from Ahsoka's hand. Before she could react, he plunged it right through her stomach. She hissed with pain and tried to grab onto his arm and force him to pull it out of her, but he held on fast, waiting until she groaned and crumpled lifelessly. Obi-Wan cried out as she fell and aimed at his back, but Anakin spun around and clashed their blades together. Obi-Wan grunted and tried to overpower him, but Anakin was stronger and knew things about the Force that Obi-Wan would never even have thought about. Within seconds, he had successfully outmaneuvered him. Anakin towered over his former Master and watched him fall to his knees, his eyes glinting dangerously.

"Stop," Padme said, her voice suddenly quivering again. "Don't do this."

Anakin turned back to face her.

"I cannot stop, Padme. There is no other Way for me. You know this better than anyone."

With that, he turned back around and dealt the killing blow. Obi-Wan fell to the ground and collapsed at his feet, groaning hoarsely. Padme covered her mouth with both hands and cried out, her voice strained with horror. He turned to her and finished her as well, making it as quick and painless as possible.

Once it was all done, Anakin closed his eyes and let go, allowing the Force overtake him so they could finally be one together.

"Lord Vader!"

He opened his eyes and sat up, startling the medic standing across him.

"Lord Vader, don't exert yourself please! You've just woken up-"

"Where am I?" he demanded furiously, tugging at the dozens of bacta tubes hooked up to him. "Where is my helmet-"

"Lord Vader, we had to remove your helmet to restore your oxygen levels-"

"I don't care!" he snarled furiously. "Give it to me now!"

The medic shakily handed it to him. Vader immediately forced the mask onto his face then clenched his other hand, causing the medic to splutter as their throat was squeezed tight enough to asphyxiate. The nurses beside them all cried out or turned away, unable to watch as their body fell to the floor with a dull thud.

"Where is your surgeon?" he hollered at them.

Immediately, a medical officer in scrubs appeared and bowed to him fearfully. "My apologies, Lord Vader."

"Fix this," Vader hissed. The surgeon immediately nodded and got to work.

As his surroundings slowly became clearer to him, he realized that he was not in his meditation chamber anymore. This was an Imperial medical pod. Someone had somehow transported him away, although for what purpose, he did not know.

Vader frowned as a thought came into his mind. He had a sneaking suspicion, and while he could not prove it...

"Lord Vader," a raspy voice exclaimed. "Oh my, I am so pleased to see that you are alive and well."

The Emperor himself strolled towards him, flanked on either side by two familiar faces. The medic beside him instinctively stood back.

"You," he hissed at the Zabrak. Maul did not acknowledge him. He continued to glower sullenly at the ground without making eye contact with him.

"Yes, yes," Palpatine replied, waving his hand indifferently. "You have met, I presume. He is my good Apprentice, who suddenly returned to me and asked me to teach him my Ways again. I am pleased that you have been introduced."

"He tried to kill me."

"Only because you were withholding information from the Emperor," Maul spat back.

"Silence!" Palpatine commanded and both of them closed their mouths. "My dear boy, I am so glad to be able to speak with you in person," he exclaimed. "Come, let us speak together...more privately," he nodded at Thrawn and Maul. Vader watched as they both bowed to him, Maul a little later than Thrawn, then turned around and walked away. The head surgeon also scuttled away, taking the nurses with him.

Now it was just the two of them.

"Why am I here?" Vader demanded.

"Calm down, my friend. You were in a deeply injured state when we found you at Mustafar, poor boy. If it was not for the Grand Admiral, why-"

"I was fine," Vader snarled. "Your Apprentice is the one who broke in and-"

"Now, now, we shall not speak of this," Palpatine frowned. "I will not tolerate any disagreements amongst you. Let bygones be bygones. We are all-"

"He is the one who struck me!"

"Silence!" Palpatine roared, and Vader stumbled back as the air around him crackled with electricity. "As I was saying, let us not waste any more of our breath on this matter. What matters is, I am willing to overlook all of your offenses, both yours and Maul's."

"My offenses?"

"Yes," Palpatine hissed. "For example, the secrets you were hiding from me."

Vader looked down. He should have known that Obi-Wan would escape once his back was turned.

This is all Obi-Wan's fault, he thought to himself angrily. If it wasn't for him...if he had just...

"I am sorry, Master. I tried to keep Kenobi contained. But he-"

"Oh, I am not talking about that."

Vader paused and looked up.

"I am not referring to your failed attempts to execute Kenobi and Tano, oh no. No, I am speaking of the child. The one that was dwelling in your Fortress."

A chill ran down Vader's spine. He did not even care that Lord Sidious had discovered he was also keeping Ahsoka captive.

His worst fears had just come true.

"What child?" he asked, feeling his throat close in on itself.

"Oh, don't be daft, my boy. Of course I know about her. I know all about her now."

"You don't..."

"Leia Organa, princess of Alderaan, about eleven years old I believe? I should have known, her birthday is the very same day that your dear queen died. If only I had realized it sooner-"

Vader closed his mouth, his entire body now growing cold.

"Yes, my dear boy, she was your daughter. Your flesh and blood. I am so sorry that we never knew."

Vader clenched his fists, but only for a split second. His jaw remained tense as he spoke. "I thought you said Padme was dead. She died."

"She did."

"Then how was she able to give birth?" Vader snapped angrily. "You could've saved her while she was still alive!"

"My boy...we didn't know. All we knew was that she had passed away," Palpatine said gently. "Her energy was no longer a part of the Force. By the time that you had woken up, she was already gone."

Vader stiffened. His mouth suddenly began to tremble despite his attempts to control it. From within the helmet, he felt something wet run down his scarred cheek.

"Now, this is no time to cry," Palpatine frowned, reaching out and placing his hand on his shoulder. "These things just can't be helped. You know how the way of the Force is."

Vader turned away from him, not wanting him to see the weakness underneath his mask. As tears streamed down his face, he thought back to Leia coming to him and asking for droids, asking to play deyjarik with him, and toddling after him while wearing Padme's necklace. He wept silently for her. As he cried underneath the helmet, Palpatine gently stroked his back.

"But do not worry. Your daughter is still lives."

Vader immediately straightened up.

"She is?" he asked, his voice trembling. He had thought that surely, after he lost consciousness, Maul would have killed her. "Where is she? Bring her to me!"

"Hush," Palpatine hissed. "There is a time and place for everything. If you can behave yourself, you may earn the opportunity to see her."

Vader frowned. He wanted to grab him by the collar and demand to see Leia now. After all, every bone in his body was itching to, the Force whispered into his ear to do it. But he restrained himself nonetheless.

"Now listen," Palpatine said. "I have something that I wish to speak with you about. Will you please hear me?"

Vader hesitated, then nodded slowly.

"Good. Let us walk together."

"Is this about Lothal?"

"Lothal? What? Oh! No," Palpatine shook his head. "No, it was never about Lothal. Lothal was just a suggestion to, you know, get you off-planet," he shrugged. "It was the Grand Admiral's idea. He informed me that he would let the Rebels set their base there so he could observe them, keep an eye on them. There is no urgent need to investigate Lothal."

"So, he brought it up to mock me."

"My friend, we were all so terribly concerned about you. You were growing so distant from us, so withdrawn. We feared that we would lose you."

Vader went silent.

"After all, we all know how hard the anniversary of your wife's death was for you. I understand, why you did what you had to do with young Leia. You thought you could keep her, even if you could not keep her mother." Vader stiffened again.

Palpatine watched him closely, drawing a breath as he carefully planned out his next words.

"What if I told you, there was a way you could see her again?"

"Don't-"

Vader trembled. Hope had done nothing but fail him. He dared not to hope.

"It's true. Everything you ever dreamed of, at your very fingertips. Power beyond imagination."

Vader inhaled shakily. Palpatine smiled ominously and moved closer to him.

"I understand that you are aware of my plans for the Death Star," he said. "Indeed, it is a risky investment which will cost us the lives of many. But I do not only deal in death. The Dark Side of the Force is multi-layered and infinite, just as complex as the Light Side itself. I have set out to accomplish what some would consider impossible; not just a machine to take life, but one to restore it. Tell me, Lord Vader, has anyone ever told you the legend of Lady Corvax and the Aeon Engine?"

Vader leaned in closer, listening with rapt attention.

Palpatine smirked, knowing he had him now.

"Many, many years ago, when Mustafar was still a lush, green planet...there was a brilliant and powerful woman, not unlike your queen herself. She was an intelligent and most capable engineer, but her heart was broken."

"Why?"

"Because her love was slain in battle," Palpatine replied. "So, she stole a crystal that was highly prized by the Mustafarians for its beauty and light. They called the Bright Star. She then constructed a complex machine with which she hoped to control the crystal's powerful energy...and for the purpose of resurrecting her dead husband."

Vader inhaled deeply, his body tense with impatience.

"Was she successful?"

"No," Palpatine replied solemnly. "Her greatest dream became her worst nightmare. A living horror. Instead of being her salvation, the machine begot her downfall. The soul of her husband became lost in the Force, trapped between existence and non-existence...never truly one or the other..." Vader swallowed nervously. "Mustafar became caught between two worlds, its twin Jestefad and the gaseous threat Lefrani. Soon, the gravitational demands became too much for the smaller planet, and its core overheated, transforming into the fiery landscape that it is today. Now, the story of Lady Corvax is a distant myth, recounted over and over again by generations of Mustafarians while longing for a different time."

Vader looked down, his body language now morose and withdrawn. Palpatine looked up at him.

"But do not fret, Lord Vader." He smiled. "You are different. You are strong in the Force...no, stronger. I know that you will not fail me."

"You mean-?"

"Yes, Lord Vader. It was all true. The Aeon Machine, the Bright Star...they are all real," he whispered. "And you, my Apprentice, will be the one to bring them back to their fullest potential."