One Path Chapter 57--We Have Nothing To Fear
Title: We Have Nothing To Fear
Author: Lionchilde
Summary: "What happened to trusting me?" he asked.
Rating: PG
Length: Around 2000 words
Category: Gen
Pairings/Characters: Obidala
A/N: One Path Chapter 57. Set during an alternate RotS.
We Have Nothing to Fear
Darth Vader stood on the command bridge of the Mustafar control center, hands clasped tightly behind his back, and gazed up through the transparisteel view wall at the galaxy that Palpatine had intended to rule. Someone else would have to rule it, he supposed, but at the moment, it was of little consequence. It was of no more consequence, in fact, than the corpse-littered floor upon which he was standing. All that mattered was the betrayal that burned in his gut.
He had gone to Padme before leaving for Mustafar, just as he promised Ani he would. He had intended to take them away, hide them both until the "Emperor" could be dealt with. Palpatine knew that Padme's time was running out; he had promised that once the holocrons were back in the hands of the Sith, he would share Darth Plagueis' secret. He said that only Plagueis himself had ever successfully created life, but Vader didn't care--he didn't need that much--not yet. All he needed for the moment was enough to keep Padme alive. Once he had that knowledge, Sidious would find himself suddenly minus a Empire--of course, he would also be dead, which would effectively negate his need for an Empire anyway. With him dead, Ani would be safe--Padme would be alive--and there should have been nothing else standing between them.
She should have trusted him. She should have waited. Instead, when he arrived at her apartment, he had found it empty. She had even taken Artoo and Threepio. He had wondered for a moment if something had happened to the boy, but he could feel the boy there. Then his presence had begun to fade, growing distant, even unreachable, until he couldn't feel it at all, which meant that she must not have listened to him. He hadn't wanted to believe that she would run, that she would choose to trust her traitorous friends in the senate more than she trusted him, but it had to be the truth. Obi Wan, if he survived Utapau at all, could not have made it back so soon. It couldn't have been him who took her away this time.
He would have to deal with the traitors in the Senate, too, he decided. He would deal with all of them, but especially with Organa. It had to have been him who had taken them away. How many times had heard Ani call the man "Uncle Bail"? It made his stomach churn, and over the past several months it had seemed to him that the Kenobis and the Organas had been growing closer, while he was left out in the cold. Now he understood why. Yes, he would deal with Organa, but he thought perhaps he would let Palpatine lay the groundwork after all, let him do the baiting until all of the traitors had been drawn out.
Palpatine had been right, he realized. Killing one traitor was not enough to put down treason. They would have to lay a careful trap and ensnare all the traitorous Senators and their allies at once, but he would be sure to have a special death waiting for Bail Organa.
Vader had intended to turn control of the government back over to the Senate once his Master had been relieved of his secrets and his interest is galactic domination. He had discovered, though, that Palpatine had also been right about something else. The Senate itself could not be trusted. Politicians could not be trusted. They turned on one another and those around them as a matter of course, and all their maneuvering for power left nothing but chaos in its wake. The galaxy could not be left to their mercy; it must be safeguarded, held secure for the sake of Ani and Padme's unborn child. All of this had been for them as much as for her, so that they would be safe--so that they would understand who it was who truly loved them. Their father couldn't give them Padme's life; Bail Organa couldn't lay the galaxy at their feet. Only Darth Vader could do that.
He had failed in his first encounter with Sidious because he had not been strong enough or known enough of the ways of the Dark Side of the Force, but even now he could feel his power growing. Even now, he could defeat the Dark Lord--all that remained unknown to him was the power to save Padme. Once he had that…
…you don't need anymore power…
But he did. To keep them safe, he did. And he would keep them safe.
I…love… you….
He froze. The faint whisper he still heard was growing weaker again. Why? He stretched out through the Force, reaching for Ani with his feelings, but found only blackness, and in that blackness, the echo of his nephew became smaller--flickered--slipped away.
WHY?
Terror gripped Darth Vader's heart. Fear twisted up inside him again, mocking--cackling in the voice of Palpatine that all he had done had been for nothing. It was all for nothing--because the boy was gone. He was gone, and soon his mother would be as well.
No!
A tear slipped down his cheek, hotter than the molten rock which ate the surface of this planet.
Not--both--of them!
Rage swallowed fear again. He spun and strode toward the holocomm. He had a report to give Palpatine, and he would find out. The Emperor would be in complete control of Coruscant by now. He would know exactly where Ani and Padme were. And if he had harmed the boy…
But as he dropped to one knee and began his transmission to Coruscant, he pushed all such thoughts away. He pushed them downward, locking them deep within his heart and burying them once again under his hatred, where Palpatine could never find them. Then, as the blue image of his so-called Master appeared, he bowed his head.
"The Separatist leadership is no more, my Master," he said.
"It is finished, then," smiled Sidious. "You have restored peace and justice to the galaxy, Lord Vader."
"That is my sole ambition. Master," he lied. "But I must ask. Have Padme and the boy been found?"
"Padme was in the Senate this afternoon, Lord Vader. Along with Senator Organa. As to the boy, it appears that he was killed in the Temple last night," replied Sidious.
That news struck Vader like a blow to the stomach, but he kept his head bowed. He grappled with his pain, wrestling it into submission and made it part of the hate that fueled him. "Has the body been found, my Master?"
"Many bodies were found, my apprentice. Burned or shot beyond recognition--" Sidious paused, and Vader looked up to see the blue figure tilt his head. "Lord Vader--I sense a disturbance in the Force. You may be in danger."
Through the transparisteel, through the flickering image of Sidious before him, he could see the familiar silvery flash of a Naboo skiff landing outside. He resisted a smile and said only, "How should I be in danger, Master?"
"I cannot say. But the danger is real; be mindful," Sidious told him.
"I will, my Master. Thank you," he dipped his head respectfully.
The image of Sidious faded and he got to his feet, a sneer appearing on his lips. "Be mindful, be mindful. Is that the best you can do? I could get that much from Obi Wan. You are the one who should be mindful, my Master. I am a disturbance in the Force."
***
"Remember what I showed you," Obi Wan told his wife from the copilot's seat. "Guard your feelings. If he will not return to the Light Side, he must be made to believe that Ani is dead."
"I know," Padme nodded. She took a breath, and he felt her anxiousness, her fear flow away.
He smiled gently. "Good."
"Let me go out first," she said as the skiff entered the glowing red atmosphere of Mustfar.
"Absolutely not!" he protested. "We go out together."
"Obi Wan, if Palpatine has convinced him that the Jedi are traitors, you're the last person he'll listen to," she argued.
"What happened to trusting me?" he asked.
"Of course I trust you," she said, resting a hand on his arm. "Now you trust me."
"What?" he frowned.
"Just let me talk to him for a minute--"
"Padme, no," he shook his head. "We said we would do this together, and that's what we're going to do. I am not going to let you go out there and confront a Sith alone."
"I'm not alone. We're always together, that's what you said. Or did you only mean that when you're the one in danger?" she asked.
"This isn't a negotiation. You are my wife, and you are pregnant with my children," he said, calmly but firmly.
"We're talking about Anakin. He wouldn't hurt Ani. I don't believe he'll hurt me, either," she told him.
"What about your nightmare?" he asked.
"You told me once that the dreams only showed possible futures. None of them has ever been like this, not exactly," she replied.
"Well, I'm afraid I'm not willing to take that chance," he said.
"Or are you just afraid?" she asked pointedly.
"For you? Yes," he said, holding her gaze. "I have to check in with Yoda. Go wait for me by the ramp, but promise me that you won't go out."
She placed her hand on his cheek and nodded sincerely. "We'll do it together."
He sensed that she meant it. "Thank you."
"I love you, Obi Wan," she smiled as she slid out of her chair.
He closed his eyes and drew in a deep, steadying breath. "And I love you, Padme."
He watched her walk out of the cockpit, then reached into his pocket for the comlink. He studied it for a long moment, running his thumb over the familiar shape, wondering suddenly how such a small object could have changed so much--how the simple keying of this comlink had set him on the path to this place and this time. It had taken him from Jedi to lover to husband and father, and now it had taken him back again--no. Not back. He had come full circle, and he was a better man for the journey he had taken. Now it was time to key the comlink again.
In the space of a few seconds, the signal traversed the endless void between Mustafar and Coruscant, and he heard, "Yes, Master Kenobi?"
The title took him momentarily by surprise. Then he bowed his head and murmured to his teacher and friend, "We're landing now. Are you in position?"
"I am," Yoda replied.
A few heartbeats of silence passed between them as he sought for words. "Master Yoda... if we don't see each other again--"
"Think not of after, Obi Wan. Always now, even eternity will be," Yoda told him quietly.
Another, longer silence fell as he took in those words. He opened himself, absorbed them, accepted the truth of them and let them become part of himself. He hoped that they would not be the final words of wisdom that Master Yoda ever spoke to him, but if they were, he was willing to accept that. He was ready to accept whatever came, whatever sacrifice was asked of him. He was a Jedi, and he was prepared to serve the will of the Force.
"May the Force be with you, my Master," he said.
"It is," replied Yoda gravely. "And may the Force be with you, young Obi Wan."
The transmission ended. He closed his eyes, breathed in the Force and exhaled himself. Centered, empty of desire, empty of fear, empty of all but the current of the Force, part of it and is conduit, Jedi Master Obi Wan Kenobi rose and walked to the ramp that would take him to meet Darth Vader.
Reaching it, he spoke one word, quietly and desperately. "Padme."
Author: Lionchilde
Summary: "What happened to trusting me?" he asked.
Rating: PG
Length: Around 2000 words
Category: Gen
Pairings/Characters: Obidala
A/N: One Path Chapter 57. Set during an alternate RotS.
We Have Nothing to Fear
Darth Vader stood on the command bridge of the Mustafar control center, hands clasped tightly behind his back, and gazed up through the transparisteel view wall at the galaxy that Palpatine had intended to rule. Someone else would have to rule it, he supposed, but at the moment, it was of little consequence. It was of no more consequence, in fact, than the corpse-littered floor upon which he was standing. All that mattered was the betrayal that burned in his gut.
He had gone to Padme before leaving for Mustafar, just as he promised Ani he would. He had intended to take them away, hide them both until the "Emperor" could be dealt with. Palpatine knew that Padme's time was running out; he had promised that once the holocrons were back in the hands of the Sith, he would share Darth Plagueis' secret. He said that only Plagueis himself had ever successfully created life, but Vader didn't care--he didn't need that much--not yet. All he needed for the moment was enough to keep Padme alive. Once he had that knowledge, Sidious would find himself suddenly minus a Empire--of course, he would also be dead, which would effectively negate his need for an Empire anyway. With him dead, Ani would be safe--Padme would be alive--and there should have been nothing else standing between them.
She should have trusted him. She should have waited. Instead, when he arrived at her apartment, he had found it empty. She had even taken Artoo and Threepio. He had wondered for a moment if something had happened to the boy, but he could feel the boy there. Then his presence had begun to fade, growing distant, even unreachable, until he couldn't feel it at all, which meant that she must not have listened to him. He hadn't wanted to believe that she would run, that she would choose to trust her traitorous friends in the senate more than she trusted him, but it had to be the truth. Obi Wan, if he survived Utapau at all, could not have made it back so soon. It couldn't have been him who took her away this time.
He would have to deal with the traitors in the Senate, too, he decided. He would deal with all of them, but especially with Organa. It had to have been him who had taken them away. How many times had heard Ani call the man "Uncle Bail"? It made his stomach churn, and over the past several months it had seemed to him that the Kenobis and the Organas had been growing closer, while he was left out in the cold. Now he understood why. Yes, he would deal with Organa, but he thought perhaps he would let Palpatine lay the groundwork after all, let him do the baiting until all of the traitors had been drawn out.
Palpatine had been right, he realized. Killing one traitor was not enough to put down treason. They would have to lay a careful trap and ensnare all the traitorous Senators and their allies at once, but he would be sure to have a special death waiting for Bail Organa.
Vader had intended to turn control of the government back over to the Senate once his Master had been relieved of his secrets and his interest is galactic domination. He had discovered, though, that Palpatine had also been right about something else. The Senate itself could not be trusted. Politicians could not be trusted. They turned on one another and those around them as a matter of course, and all their maneuvering for power left nothing but chaos in its wake. The galaxy could not be left to their mercy; it must be safeguarded, held secure for the sake of Ani and Padme's unborn child. All of this had been for them as much as for her, so that they would be safe--so that they would understand who it was who truly loved them. Their father couldn't give them Padme's life; Bail Organa couldn't lay the galaxy at their feet. Only Darth Vader could do that.
He had failed in his first encounter with Sidious because he had not been strong enough or known enough of the ways of the Dark Side of the Force, but even now he could feel his power growing. Even now, he could defeat the Dark Lord--all that remained unknown to him was the power to save Padme. Once he had that…
…you don't need anymore power…
But he did. To keep them safe, he did. And he would keep them safe.
I…love… you….
He froze. The faint whisper he still heard was growing weaker again. Why? He stretched out through the Force, reaching for Ani with his feelings, but found only blackness, and in that blackness, the echo of his nephew became smaller--flickered--slipped away.
WHY?
Terror gripped Darth Vader's heart. Fear twisted up inside him again, mocking--cackling in the voice of Palpatine that all he had done had been for nothing. It was all for nothing--because the boy was gone. He was gone, and soon his mother would be as well.
No!
A tear slipped down his cheek, hotter than the molten rock which ate the surface of this planet.
Not--both--of them!
Rage swallowed fear again. He spun and strode toward the holocomm. He had a report to give Palpatine, and he would find out. The Emperor would be in complete control of Coruscant by now. He would know exactly where Ani and Padme were. And if he had harmed the boy…
But as he dropped to one knee and began his transmission to Coruscant, he pushed all such thoughts away. He pushed them downward, locking them deep within his heart and burying them once again under his hatred, where Palpatine could never find them. Then, as the blue image of his so-called Master appeared, he bowed his head.
"The Separatist leadership is no more, my Master," he said.
"It is finished, then," smiled Sidious. "You have restored peace and justice to the galaxy, Lord Vader."
"That is my sole ambition. Master," he lied. "But I must ask. Have Padme and the boy been found?"
"Padme was in the Senate this afternoon, Lord Vader. Along with Senator Organa. As to the boy, it appears that he was killed in the Temple last night," replied Sidious.
That news struck Vader like a blow to the stomach, but he kept his head bowed. He grappled with his pain, wrestling it into submission and made it part of the hate that fueled him. "Has the body been found, my Master?"
"Many bodies were found, my apprentice. Burned or shot beyond recognition--" Sidious paused, and Vader looked up to see the blue figure tilt his head. "Lord Vader--I sense a disturbance in the Force. You may be in danger."
Through the transparisteel, through the flickering image of Sidious before him, he could see the familiar silvery flash of a Naboo skiff landing outside. He resisted a smile and said only, "How should I be in danger, Master?"
"I cannot say. But the danger is real; be mindful," Sidious told him.
"I will, my Master. Thank you," he dipped his head respectfully.
The image of Sidious faded and he got to his feet, a sneer appearing on his lips. "Be mindful, be mindful. Is that the best you can do? I could get that much from Obi Wan. You are the one who should be mindful, my Master. I am a disturbance in the Force."
***
"Remember what I showed you," Obi Wan told his wife from the copilot's seat. "Guard your feelings. If he will not return to the Light Side, he must be made to believe that Ani is dead."
"I know," Padme nodded. She took a breath, and he felt her anxiousness, her fear flow away.
He smiled gently. "Good."
"Let me go out first," she said as the skiff entered the glowing red atmosphere of Mustfar.
"Absolutely not!" he protested. "We go out together."
"Obi Wan, if Palpatine has convinced him that the Jedi are traitors, you're the last person he'll listen to," she argued.
"What happened to trusting me?" he asked.
"Of course I trust you," she said, resting a hand on his arm. "Now you trust me."
"What?" he frowned.
"Just let me talk to him for a minute--"
"Padme, no," he shook his head. "We said we would do this together, and that's what we're going to do. I am not going to let you go out there and confront a Sith alone."
"I'm not alone. We're always together, that's what you said. Or did you only mean that when you're the one in danger?" she asked.
"This isn't a negotiation. You are my wife, and you are pregnant with my children," he said, calmly but firmly.
"We're talking about Anakin. He wouldn't hurt Ani. I don't believe he'll hurt me, either," she told him.
"What about your nightmare?" he asked.
"You told me once that the dreams only showed possible futures. None of them has ever been like this, not exactly," she replied.
"Well, I'm afraid I'm not willing to take that chance," he said.
"Or are you just afraid?" she asked pointedly.
"For you? Yes," he said, holding her gaze. "I have to check in with Yoda. Go wait for me by the ramp, but promise me that you won't go out."
She placed her hand on his cheek and nodded sincerely. "We'll do it together."
He sensed that she meant it. "Thank you."
"I love you, Obi Wan," she smiled as she slid out of her chair.
He closed his eyes and drew in a deep, steadying breath. "And I love you, Padme."
He watched her walk out of the cockpit, then reached into his pocket for the comlink. He studied it for a long moment, running his thumb over the familiar shape, wondering suddenly how such a small object could have changed so much--how the simple keying of this comlink had set him on the path to this place and this time. It had taken him from Jedi to lover to husband and father, and now it had taken him back again--no. Not back. He had come full circle, and he was a better man for the journey he had taken. Now it was time to key the comlink again.
In the space of a few seconds, the signal traversed the endless void between Mustafar and Coruscant, and he heard, "Yes, Master Kenobi?"
The title took him momentarily by surprise. Then he bowed his head and murmured to his teacher and friend, "We're landing now. Are you in position?"
"I am," Yoda replied.
A few heartbeats of silence passed between them as he sought for words. "Master Yoda... if we don't see each other again--"
"Think not of after, Obi Wan. Always now, even eternity will be," Yoda told him quietly.
Another, longer silence fell as he took in those words. He opened himself, absorbed them, accepted the truth of them and let them become part of himself. He hoped that they would not be the final words of wisdom that Master Yoda ever spoke to him, but if they were, he was willing to accept that. He was ready to accept whatever came, whatever sacrifice was asked of him. He was a Jedi, and he was prepared to serve the will of the Force.
"May the Force be with you, my Master," he said.
"It is," replied Yoda gravely. "And may the Force be with you, young Obi Wan."
The transmission ended. He closed his eyes, breathed in the Force and exhaled himself. Centered, empty of desire, empty of fear, empty of all but the current of the Force, part of it and is conduit, Jedi Master Obi Wan Kenobi rose and walked to the ramp that would take him to meet Darth Vader.
Reaching it, he spoke one word, quietly and desperately. "Padme."