The following story is a work of fanfiction. Star Wars is owned by Disney and George Lucas.

There once was a boy who was strong in the Force. The boy was trained to become a Jedi and devoted himself to the Light. One day, the young Jedi fell in love with a Senator, but romance was forbidden according to the Jedi Code. But the young Padawan was very much in love and married in secret. Their union led to a family as the Jedi's wife became with child, but one day, he had visions of her demise. Desperate to save his beloved, the Jedi turned to the Dark Side and began to shed the blood of the innocents all for the sake of obtaining power to alter her fate.

To save the only light in his life, he sacrificed everything, even his soul to the darkness.

Chapter 1: Fallen Jedi

Anakin Skywalker's heart was like a pendulum swaying between what he believed what was right and wrong. The fires of the volcanic Mustafar mirrored the torrent of emotions that raged within his breast. Anger, sorrow, regret, hope. The fallen Jedi stood amongst the chaos he had wrought as the stinging winds wafted through his black cloak. Though his eyes displayed his transformation as a Sith, he still shed remorseful tears over his actions. There was no turning back now. The depths of his sins as Darth Vader were too deep, but this was the path he chose, to uncover the mysterious power that could save Padmé's life. As long as he could save her, in spite of all he's done, it would be worth it.

That didn't mean that Anakin would shrug off the lives he'd slain. The deaths of his brethren would always be with him. It was selfish of him to abandon the Jedi Code to sacrifice countless lives for the sake of one. He owned that. After completing his mission to assassinate the Separatist Council, Vader was instructed to contact his master once he returned to his ship. He wanted to obtain this power as fast as possible. Unknown to him, a certain Jedi Master followed suit and discovered the latest atrocities his Padawan had committed. The saber cuts that marred the heaps of corpses including the eviscerated Nute Gunray proved the investigating Jedi's assumptions were correct. "Oh, Anakin..."

The Dark Lord turned away from his destruction to make his advance toward the spaceport where his starship awaited him and as he turned away, the sound of footsteps wading through the rubble roused his attention from his troubled thoughts.

"ANAKIN!" an all too familiar voice shouted with conviction. It was his former master, Obi-Wan Kenobi. His face was riddled with grief and disappointment at what became of his pupil, but the fallen Jedi said nothing.

Instead, the Padawan turned to face him with a smug grin as if he anticipated the Jedi's arrival which quickly returned to his scowl.

"What have you done Anakin!?" Obi-Wan's inquiry almost sounded like a plea. "How could you kill all those people!? The younglings!?"

"You wouldn't understand…" replied the Sith Lord averting his gaze to Obi-Wan's saddened eyes while clenching his fists. Even now, hearing his crimes struck him deep within his core.

Even though Anakin considered Obi-Wan to be his brother, there was no way he could understand the urgency of his mission. And with all the corruption Anakin witnessed on the Jedi Council, how could he expect himself to trust the Jedi Master with his plight? If there was a way to save his wife without any bloodshed he would've done it, but the fates were not kind to the young Skywalker. The only path he had left was to become Darth Vader, a demon for the sake of love.

The silence of his corrupted Padawan prompted the bearded Jedi to continue speaking. "Anakin, I know about Padmé…" Anakin shot Obi-Wan a fierce glare at the mention of her name. "And the baby…" The mentor paused momentarily before carrying on, "I was only able to track you here because of her."

"STAY AWAY FROM HER!" Vader bellowed as his azure eyes shifted into a malevolent gold before returning to their original hue. It was clear that he was fiercely protective of the Senator.

The sudden surge of Anakin's Sith persona alarmed Obi-Wan. Despite all the sins his pupil committed, he could still see the light inside of him. As his teacher, he thought it was best to try to call him back to the Light Side of the Force.

"Anakin, Chancellor Palpatine is the Emperor! He's manipulating you! You've become the very thing you swore to destroy!" Obi-Wan tried to appeal to the young man's sense of reason, but his claims no matter how true they were, fell on deaf ears.

"So what if that's true, Obi-Wan? I've seen the corruption of the Jedi Council!" Vader retorted.

"Please, Anakin, listen to me! Turn yourself in! I can help you! It's not too late to return to the light!"

The remnants of Anakin Skywalker that held the brotherly love for his former comrade gave him a sad smile. "You failed to save me Obi-Wan. It's too late for me to turn back now."

"No one is beyond redemption." Obi-Wan reassured with a comforting pat on his disciple's shoulder. "Come home, Anakin. Atone for your sins. I'll see to it personally that Padmé and her child will be taken care of once the Council carries out your sentence."

For a moment Anakin believed that he could turn away from the darkness that was gnawing away at him, that he could put his trust in Obi-Wan and everything would be right in the world.

But it wasn't.

In Anakin's eyes, Obi-Wan was just like all the rest of the Jedi and now he's planning on taking his wife and their unborn child away from him. That was something he cannot and will not allow. The mere thought of losing them was enough to awaken his dark passenger, Darth Vader.

Unbeknownst to the Jedi Master, he did not notice the transformation and continued to leave his consoling hand upon "Anakin's" shoulder. The Sith Lord placed his left hand upon Obi-Wan's and began to squeeze while answering with a stern "no."

"Anakin?" Obi-Wan asked wincing in pain.

"NO!" Vader roared slamming his right palm into the Jedi's sternum driving him back with the Force. "YOU WILL NOT TAKE HER FROM ME!"

The sudden blow caused the Jedi Master to stagger as he struggled to catch the air that escaped his lungs. Gazing upon the corrupted eyes of his pupil, Kenobi could feel the anguish and hate he emitted. Perhaps confrontation was inevitable and seeing his once bright-eyed Padawan in misery wounded him.

Obi-Wan gathered his strength and took on a stalwart stance to cut off Vader's advance to the ship. His face was twisted with sorrow to turn against a brother for the sake of the Republic, but the Sith must be stopped.

"You're right Anakin… I have failed you…" Kenobi said regretfully drawing his lightsaber. "As your master, let me take responsibility for your actions and put you out of your misery…"

Darth Vader was amused to accept his master's challenge and drew his own lightsaber after removing his cloak. "You will try, but you will fail…"

From that moment on, there were no words, only the sound of their sabers clashing together.

xxx

Ahsoka Tano could not believe it. She heard the rumors of her master's downfall and how he began to systematically execute his Jedi brethren, but she refused to believe the words of the remaining Council members who saw Anakin Skywalker as an enemy to be destroyed. The Togruta Padawan had to find the answers on her own and it wouldn't be from her peers, no she decided examine the security footage while the guard was away.

What she saw terrified her. Ahsoka saw with her own eyes the horrendous acts committed by the master she admired, her "Skyguy" who mercilessly cut down all in his path.

"This can't be true…" she murmured to herself. "What would make Master Anakin stoop so low?" Anakin's Padawan puzzled over the thought and decided to see someone who knows her master better than her, Senator Amidala.

Arriving at Padmé's home Ahsoka was greeted by C-3PO at the door.

"Miss Ahsoka! How good it is to see you!" welcomed the golden droid.

"Hey Threepio…" the Jedi smiled wryly. "Is Padmé home?"

"Yes, of course. Shall I fetch her for you?" he replied.

Ahsoka rubbed her shoulders with uncertainty out of fear of Padmé's response. The young Padawan felt as if she was overstepping her boundaries, but she needed to know the reason behind her master's actions.

"Yes, please do." she requested. The Togruta watched the droid wander off to inform his master of her arrival.

"Mistress Padmé, Miss Ahsoka is here to see you."

"Send her in." said the Senator.

Upon gaining Senator Amidala's approval, Ahsoka entered her home where she found the Naboo woman sitting by the balcony watching the sun set with a forlorn look on her face. The darkening sky reflected the turbulent emotions she felt.

"Greetings, Senator Amidala." Ahsoka greeted.

"Just Padmé is fine Ahsoka." she replied with a sad smile. Her lush brown hair usually kept in a top bun hung loosely to her shoulders and the girth of pregnancy could be seen under the table. Ahsoka still found it hard to believe that Padmé and Anakin had been together for so long she couldn't help but stare at the life growing inside her master's wife.

"I can guess why you're here…" Padmé spoke rubbing her belly. "It's about Ani right?"

The Padawan gave a solemn nod. "He's all the Council is talking about right now…" Ahsoka trailed off for a brief pause, "Padmé, you know Master Anakin better than anyone. Why would he do something like this?" The girl's mournful blue eyes stared at the Senator's hoping to glean some kind of answer that would make her understand.

"I don't know." she said flatly. "Obi-Wan told me earlier today that Anakin might be doing this of his own will…"

"But Master Anakin just wouldn't do something this horrible!" the Jedi protested.

"But he did!" Padmé shouted on the verge of tears. "Before…Before he left on some 'secret mission,' he told me that everything will make sense once he's finished…" The sniffling spouse wiped away her tears as she continued, "I just don't understand how he could do such terrible things…"

Ahsoka bit her thumb in a pensive manner. "I remember Master Obi-Wan said that some 'Sith Emperor' is manipulating my master. What if Master Anakin is brainwashed or something?"

Padmé reached out and took Ahsoka's hand in hers, admiring the devotion the young girl has for Anakin. "Let's hope you're right… The Anakin we know would never do something like this…"

xxx

The crackling sound of lightsabers clashing together echoed throughout the mining factory of Mustafar. Darth Vader and Obi-Wan's aggressive confrontation led them to duel inside the control room where the two deftly slash at each other in a flurry of swinging motions whilst minding the maimed corpses the Dark Lord had murdered.

Their blades hummed and sparked as they once again met at the center of their strikes. The two warriors deadlocked and stared at each other with a burning intensity. Vader decided to pressure the Jedi Knight by continuing his barrage with his cybernetic right arm to take advantage of its weight in each swing. It was like an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object. Vader's assault was great, but the parrying style of Obi-Wan's defense was just as formidable.

Bringing their lightsabers to clash at the center once again both master and student tried to pressure each other for the advantage.

"You used to be my student Anakin, I know all of your moves." Obi-Wan goaded with a smile.

"Same goes for you!" Vader responded with an upward slash in an effort to break the Jedi's balance. It succeeded, but before an opening could be exploited, Obi-Wan thrusted his free hand forward to push the Dark Lord away with the Force. Vader immediately noticed the motion and responded in kind with his own Force Push.

The collision of two powerful Force users trashed the control room and sent them both flying in opposite directions. The tip of the Dark Lord's lightsaber tore through the control panel and activated the drill to dangerous levels causing the magma to go critical. Slowly regaining his senses, he noticed the Jedi fled the room to put a distance between the two.

It was typical of Obi-Wan for his "wait-and-see" style of combat, but Vader was relentless and pursued him. The Jedi was in mid-air riding one of the factory hover crates and looked down at his charge who quickly followed suit. They were across from each other now. The magma rose high between them as they hovered along to a nearby platform.

There was a tense silence between them. Only the sounds of their humming weapons and the roars of lava could be heard before Obi-Wan began to speak. "You were my brother, Anakin… I loved you…"

The Dark Lord said nothing, he only let the Jedi Master release his emotions. "YOU WERE THE CHOSEN ONE! You were supposed to destroy the Sith, not join them! Bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness."

"I don't care about that old prophecy." Vader responded tightening his grip on the hilt of his saber. "The only fate I'm concerned about is Padmé's."

"And you would slaughter countless of innocent lives just to change it? You're a monster and a fool!" Kenobi chastised.

"You think I would do this if there was another way to save her!? There isn't! Life isn't fair Obi-Wan!" Vader's yellow eyes narrowed as if he was pleading for another ray of hope before surrendering to the cruel reality. "I don't care if the galaxy sees me as a monster! I will save Padmé and bring balance to the Force!" The Dark Lord then resumed to take his variant of the Djem So style.

"You still think you can fix all the damage you've done? No my friend, you're too far gone…" replied the master Jedi returning to his defensive Soresu style.

Vader and Kenobi continued their duel as they exchanged blows while scaling the scaffolds of the facility. The rumbling of the volcano caused a large mass of debris to divide the platform between the two swordsmen. The lava roared loudly and began to wash against the levels below them. Flames lick the corpses until they were consumed by the burning river. Obi-Wan saw this as an opportunity to escape and let the factory's self-destruction bring about the downfall of his former apprentice instead of sullying his hands. He put a distance between them and leapt to the highest platform with his starfighter in sight.

Obi-Wan then turned his attention back to the Dark Jedi with his arms gestured in a victorious manner. "It's over Anakin! I have the high ground!"

"You underestimate the power of the Dark Side." Darth Vader replied. He was up to the challenge and was prepared to end their duel. The Sith took a running start as the crumbling platform gave way beneath his steps.

"Don't try it!" Kenobi warned but to his surprise, the Dark Lord effortlessly vaulted over to him. The Jedi Master quickly tried to take a defensive stance to hold him off, but his icy blue eyes widened in surprise when he felt the heat of Vader's lightsaber run through him. Apart from the roars of the volcano, there was only silence.