Chapter 37: The dark side of the force.

For a moment there was silence between us.

Me tired from pushing myself and Palpatine lost in his gloating laughter.

Then, he felt something. Something odd.

There was no sound of conflict coming from without.

No blaster fire, no artillery bombardment, no buzzing lightsabers save his own.

This being the middle of a fight, I couldn't check the logs on the desk to make sure if I had succeeded or not, but given the lack of action, I likely had.

A relieved sigh escaped my lips and a small smile returned to me.

I hadn't failed. I succeeded. I did it!

After the stupidity of the last few days, this one success was a crutch I couldn't afford more.

"You!" He glared at me, suspecting something, "You did this, didn't you?!" He strode forward, lightsaber raised high, and brought it to my neck.

"What did you do?" He asked, rage seeping off of him like a fine red mist.

Or maybe that was just his lightsaber.

"Go fuck yourself, Palpatine." I snorted, "I won. And you lost."

"What.Did.You.Do?" He said, his teeth grinding, as the lightsaber pushed further, when suddenly it came in range.

My forcefield activated, catapulting the lightsaber back at Palapatine, though with little force.

Now all I had to do was stall until Anakin came to the rescue.

"Heh!" I laughed, "Yeah, you can't hurt me. You can't do jack shit. You're just another weak little boy from Naboo, who never grew out of your master's shadow. And you never will. Not that that stopped you from killing your own master, did it Sidious?

As for what, well isn't that clear?

I was hardly about to let you get away with taking the credit for my plans, my life's work, now was I?"

He trembled, stepping back.

"How do you- how do you know that? Who are you?" He asked, leveling his lightsaber at me.

Welp. Time for some good ol' bullshit no jutsu.

"Don't recognize me? I'm almost offended, Sheev. After all I did for you, trained you raised you! What an ungrateful brat you are!"

"No! Tha-that cant be! It's impossible!" He raged, grabbing me in a force choke, throwing me against the wall again, raising me up against the wall my the neck

"You kill me here, Sheev and I'll just reincarnate with the force into another body. And this time, maybe it'll be one capable of using the force. That wouldn't fare well for you now would it apprentice?" I gasped for breath.

"Then I'll just have to kill you a third time! It won't be too hard!" Palpatine broke into a cruel grin, the force choke increasing in power, my neck bruising red and blue.

I began to claw at my throat almost instictively, and my eyes rolled over, exposing their whites, the oxygen deprivation taking it's toll.

Then suddenly it disappeared, dissipating like it had never existed.

Over me stood a shadow, one I recognised once my vision cleared again, through big gulping breaths.

Anakin Skywalker.

The cavalry had arrived and not a moment too soon!

Obi Wan Kenobi wasn't far behind, and trailing him, Ahsoka.

She dashed towards me, fear in her eyes, and slid beside me, putting my head between her arms.

She seemed to want to say something but held back, glancing at Obi Wan.

"Jedi, thank goodness you're here...he- he ...this man is a traitor. He tried to assassinate m-"

"I don't think anyone is believing anything you say anymore, Chancellor.

And we're certainly not going to allow a sith lord the benefit of the doubt." Master Windu said, walking out from the other end of the hallway, lightsaber in hand. And he looked pissed. Even more so than before.

"Then die!" Palpatine shouted, letting loose a storm of force lightning, sending everyone on the backpedal as they defended themselves from him.

Using that chance he force pushed himself back to his feet, grabbing his fallen lightsaber with one hand, throwing master Windu to the wall with another.

With that, he leapt away, leaning back as Ahsoka's lightsaber swept by his face, blocking Anakin's lightsaber with his own.

Obi Wan on the other hand, circled around to his back, and went for a stab, only to be stopped by Palpatine's force grip on his saber blade.

Twisting his wrist, Palpatine brought his overwhelming mastery of force to bear, flipping Obi Wan into the air, spinning him, before slamming him into master Windu, who for his part caught him, cushioning their fall.

Now, with a moment of respite, Palpatine focused on the two opponents left.

He threw a bolt of force lightning at Anakin to keep him busy, twirling his lightsaber, tucking it into his robe.

He turned to Ahsoka, and pushed off the floor, gliding over to her with blinding speed, and before she could react, hit her in the stomach with a force bolt.

Ahsoka flew across the hall, slamming brutally into the wall on the other end, her head lolling, listless.

One opponent dealt with, his confidence returned.

He flipped back to face Anakin, graceful as a swan, and stepped back, bringing his lightsaber back out of his robe in one fluid motion, deflecting Anakin's blade.

It was art, the way he fought, sending a wave of lightning at Obi Wan and Windu, keeping them on their heels while he toyed with Anakin.

And that the only way it could be described.

Toying. Like a cat playing with it's food.

Anakin swung at Palpatine, aiming for his waist, only to swing his lightsaber up at his face mid-swing, like a bat and was deflected, again, while Palpatine dodged his swings with mere inches to spare.

Not because he couldn't dodge them better, but rather because he didn't feel the need to.

It was just another way he showed his absolute dominion over the field.

Anakin could hardly keep up, even with one of Palpatine's hands tied, keeping the other two jedi away.

That is, until Obi Wan ran, not towards Palpatine, but away from him, ducking into a nearby room.

Windu on the other hand stepped forth, creating a wall of force pushing back at the lightning slowly getting closer.

Palpatine saw this too, and knew. Playtime is over.

His eyes grew cold, and his head snapped to Anakin, focusing on him first.

He let out a flurry of blows with his lightsabers, sending Anakin stumbling back, breaking his defence, before throwing him into the wall, spinning around in a hurry.

Just in time too, as Kenobi burst from a wall behind him, his lightsaber held straight, thrusting into Palpatine's chest.

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For a moment it looked like he had won, stabbing Palpatine through and Windu relaxed, and I sighed in relief.

But then a wind blew in through the window, setting his robe aflutter revealing the truth.

At the last moment, Palpatine had deflected Obi Wan's blade with the force, grabbing hold of it, trapping him.

Before any of us could react, he flipped his lightsaber, and with a decisive grip thrust it through Obi Wan's chest.

"Obi Wan!" Anakin cried out, falling to his knees as he watched the light drain Obi Wan's eyes, motes of light emerging from within him and settling into Palpatine's body.

He became younger still, and heartier, the color returning to his aged cheeks.

Where earlier he had looked to be in his 50s, he now looked like a man barely in his thirties, even younger than Obi Wan.

Horror manifest in Mace Windu's eyes, and his hand shook, if for a brief moment at what he had just witnessed.

"How?!" He muttered shaken to the core.

"The Dark Side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural." Palpatine replied, secure in his victory, sending a wave of lightning at Windu, in his moment of weakness.

Stricken with shock, he was unable to react in time and fell spasming onto the floor, his lightsaber short circuiting from the voltage.

"Now." Palpatine purred gleefully, turning to Anakin.

"Only you are left, alone."

"You....." Anakin snarled, eyes filled with hate.

"I was planning on taking you in as my apprentice, once the war was over." Palpatine continued, bearing down on Anakin with the force, "Mould you into a great lord of the sith. One far stronger and younger than myself."

Before he turned away, and uttered one word.

"Pity."

Turning back he swung his lightsaber in a clear arc to end Anakin once and for all.

Unfortunately for him though, he had underestimated Anakin.

Hate flowed through his veins now, as Anakin drew on the dark side, bringing in waves of force, like the tides of a full moon, crashing into Sidious's body, knocking him back.

Fear and glee mixed in Palpatine's eyes.

"Yes! Do it! Draw upon the dark side. Embrace it! Embrace the unlimited power!" He shouted with joy.

But Anakin wasn't in a listening mood.

He extended a hand, and his lightsaber came flying into it, the blade, initially blue, now dyeing a deep purple.

Anakin teetered on the edge of the boundary, the allure of the dark side tempting him with every step, every breath he drew.

The power was....intoxicating. Visions flooded into his mind. Visions of power, of the future of greatness.

How do I know this?

Because so strong was Anakin with the force that his visions were leaking over, invading my own mind.

Visions of death and rebirth.

Of Padme and Vader. Luke and Leia.

And starkiller. And starkiller. And starkiller.

A whole army of them.

That shook me out of my stupor.

No. This can't be allowed to happen.

He can't fall to the dark side. Not yet. Not beyond my grasp.

I pushed off the wall, even as my body begged me to just faint and avoid the pain.

"Hrngh!" I groaned, through grit teeth and stood up, uneasy on my feet

With my left hand, I grabbed my right, and took a deep breath.

You are my tool Anakin! I shouted internally, as indignation bubbled forth.

Know your damn place!

With a jerk, I pushed my arm up into place, the sting of pain ripping through me, as bone fragments grinded beneath my flesh, tearing through muscle and nerve, and aimed at the preoccupied Palpatine.

His force warned him then, and suddenly he turned to face me, furrowing his brows.

"Die!" I shouted, and pressed the finger pad trigger, shooting the projectile at him, amidst smoke and crackle.

The octagonal taser bit corrected itself mid air, propelling itself at Palpatine, who just raised a hand, and called upon the force, stopping the bullet at an arm's length from him.

He sneered at me, thinking it to be one final futile attempt at him.

Until the sneer was wiped from his face, when the taser bit exploded in his force grip, propelling another, smaller bit at him, one he couldn't react fast enough to.

It stuck to the nape of his neck, discharging a massive voltage straight into his nerves, shocking him senseless.

"Hah! How do you like a taste of your own medicine, weather boy?!" I snapped at him, jumping with joy, while Anakin stopped in his tracks, shaken.

He looked down upon the fallen senator covered in his own piss, confused and muddled at first, the sight sobering him up.

Slowly, the rage drained from him, and he let go of his lightsaber, looking down at his shaking hands as the realisation dawned on him.

The realisation of what he had done. What he had almost become.

He looked at me, gratefully, with tears in his eyes, his shoulders slouched in relief, as if a great weight had been lifted off of them.

I nodded back at him. We needed no words now.

This wasn't a moment to be spoiled, but rather cherished.

I soaked in the satisfaction, the accomplishment, before the pain came rushing back and I collapsed onto the floor, gasping.

Anakin ran over to me, concerned, when he saw the look in my eyes.

"I'm fine." I rasped, kneeling against the wall, "Ahsoka and master Windu are in more immediate need of help. Go!" I said, gesturing at the two lying unconscious on the floor.

Anakin nodded.

"I'll....call for help. For all three of you."

He said, and walked away as my consciousness slipped off to make merry.

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