Sheev Palpatine strode towards his office, scanning the report he was reading on his datapad as he walked. If he had been the vulnerable, clueless and completely defenseless man he pretended to be, he would have blindly walked into his office, eyes still fixed on his datapad. But Palpatine wasn't defenseless and certainly wasn't clueless. Therefore, when he reached the door to his office, he hesitated before opening the door.

Something was wrong. The sensation of the dark side of the force seemed to leak out from behind the door, his office positively drowning in the dark side. He had always been careful to cloak the dark force energy that clung to his office because of him, knowing that the Jedi would easily see through the facade he wore if he didn't. The force energy that seeped through that door couldn't possibly be coming from him. So what, or who, was it coming it from?

Palpatine disappeared, Darth Sidious taking his place. There was an dark sider in his office, one that wasn't one he had trained. It was time to dispose of it.

Sidious opened the door, immediately striding through the threshold and into his office. He had to admit, he couldn't exactly hide the way he stopped dead in his tracks at the sight that greeted him, his mouth even opening as he was taken by complete and utter surprise.

Dressed in dark, stylish robes was no one other than Obi-Wan Kenobi, his eyes glowing an unnatural, molten yellow. His shiny black boots were resting on Sidious' desk, the man himself leant back into Sidious' chair. A lightsaber, different to the one Sidious had seen before, was clearly attached to Kenobi's belt, while a smile was visible on his lips. Assuredly, the most fearsome weapon he wielded was that minefield of a smile.

"Hello there." Kenobi greeted, his voice somehow sounding chilling in ways Sidious had never realized before. And kriffing hells, did the force thrum with power as he spoke. "I see some people never change."

At the man's words and the mocking eyes that accompanied them, Sidious regained his senses. No matter how shocking it was, the force did not lie. Obi-Wan Kenobi was sitting, or rather lounging, before him, swathed in the dark side just as much he was. His hand reached out, the force answering his call to bring his lightsabers to him. However, they never came. They weren't where he had left them, hidden away in one of his private drawers.

In front of him, Kenobi shook his head, tutting at Sidious' behavior. Slowly, he raised his hand, revealing Sidious' lightsabers were held within his grip. "Looking for these?" Kenobi asked as he waved them about, the fierce grin magnifying, if that were even possible. Sidious glared, anger raging through the force all around him.

"How did you find them?" He managed to ground out through clenched teeth. After all, he was a curious man and even with his fury blinding his thoughts, he wanted to know how the man had found something that even some of the best Jedi couldn't sense.

In response, Kenobi only grinned harder. "To be honest, it wasn't that hard. You're obviously wondering how I found them while the Jedi couldn't even sense them." Sidious glared harder at that particular remark. "The answer is simple really: the Jedi look for the dark side but I looked for the shimmers in the force, shimmers that betrayed the glamours you put on them." Sidious' features seemed to release his anger at the explanation, hate morphing into shock and maybe, if only a little bit, of admiration. It took great skill to do what Kenobi had done, skill that the man seemed to have in spades.

"Who taught you how to do that?" Sidious questioned, for now forgetting that the man had his lightsabers. Knowledge was power, and Sidious was intent on gaining some.

Kenobi seemed to evaluate Sidious before answering, his bright yellow eyes scanning Sidious from head to foot. His answer itself was short, but nether the less caused another wave of shock to resonate through Sidious' black soul. "You did."

At first, Sidious didn't understand at all, sure that he had never taught Kenobi anything in his life. Force, he hadn't even believed the man could hold so much darkness, his mind set on turning Skywalker instead. But then Sidious thought about it, his mind recalling what his apprentice had told him a few days ago.

An experiment gone wrong. Grevious dead. Three new Sith.

Suddenly, everything clicked into place, the details revealing themselves to Sidious in blinding clarity. "You're not Obi-Wan Kenobi." Sidious stated, a sense of unease traveling down his spine as the man before him smirked.

"No, I'm not." The man confirmed, taking his boots off the desk before standing up. He bowed to Sidious, his eyes never breaking from Sidious' gaze, before returning to his full height. "My name is Darth Tempest, Lord and Master of the Sith. I have a...proposition for you." Tempest extended his hand, letting Sidious take his lighsabers back. After doing so, Sidious stared at Tempest, recognizing and re-evaluating the fellow Sith that stood before him. A Sith, that was although competition, could make a powerful ally.

"And what kind of proposition is that, Darth Tempest?"

"I am under the impression that you are, and have always been, a seeker of knowledge, Darth Sidious. Therefore, I thought that you would benefit from what I know, such as, say the location of the forgotten Sith Temple entrance that lies underneath the Jedi Temple." Tempest proposed, Sidious standing straighter at the mention of the Temple. "In return, of course, I would like to know some information of my own."

Sidious narrowed his eyes at Tempest, his interest peaked even if he was suspicious of the other Sith Lord. "Go on." He prompted, confirming to Tempest that he was interested.

In response, a satisfied smirk leapt onto Tempest's face, his yellow eyes flashing in the dimly lit office. "Tell me, Sidious, what do you know about the orders that were programmed into the clones?"

Tempest strode down the Senate hallways, his cloak blending in with the shadows. He avoided as many confrontations as he could, using his powerful mind tricks when confrontation with the guards was absolutely necessary. He needed to leave quickly, finish the rest of his errands, and then get back to the Temple as fast as possible. He could not let the Jedi find out what he was planning.

Tempest quickened his pace, making his way through the Senate, navigating his way through endless corridors and halls that he had memorized years ago. Underneath his hood, his eyes glowed a deadly molten yellow, his focus not wavering as he pasted senators and guards. He had placed a glamour upon himself that made everyone disinterested in him, forgetting they had even seen him once he had walked past. It was something that required a lot of focus, so Tempest was more than relieved when he entered a less densely populated corridor.

However, even there it was not completely deserted. Two women walked ahead of him, along with a tall man, their backs turned to him. His first instinct was to just overtake them, thinking they were just senators, but then he noticed the guards that followed one of the women. Their distinctive armor instantly gave away the planet they were from, and therefore, the woman they were protecting.

Satine.

Tempest stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes widening at the realization. Although he could only see her back, he recognized her soft blonde hair and the headdress she wore immediately.

"I admire your courage to stay neutral, Satine, even in these dark times. I feel as if this war is only getting worse." The other women said, her brown hair tied up into an elegant bun. Tempest instantly recognized her voice, a voice that had belonged to dear friend once - Padme Amidalla.

"Indeed, Duchess. What you have done to change Mandalore's ways is a magnificent achievement, even if the rest of the Senate do not believe in your views." The man commented, who Tempest realized was Bail Organa. He'd met with the man multiple times, though he regretted to say they were never truly close friends like Padme had been. However, his eyes only followed Satine, his Satine.

"Thank you, Senator Organa. It is nice hear from people who agree with me. You as well, Padme. I am grateful that both of you are pushing for negotiations with the Separatists. You are right – this war is only getting worse and I fear for what will become of the galaxy if it carries on." She replied back, her voice just as angelic as he remembered. All three of them stopped in the corridor where it spilt into two hallways, both leading in different directions.

"We fear that too, Satine. It was a pleasure to see you again and I hope maybe we could reaquaint ourselves. How about tomorrow, at my apartments?" Padme invited, smiling at Satine. She smiled back, her eyes happier and brighter than he remembered.

"I will make sure I'm there Padme." Satine gave a slight bow, Padme and Bail bowing together in response.

Both Padme and Bail said their farewells before turning to walk away down one of the hallways. Soon Satine stood completely alone, except for her guards, her eyes still focused on her departing friends. If there was a time to reveal his presence, this was it.

Tempest made to take a step forwards but then his body suddenly froze in place. He knew this wasn't his Satine. This woman was just an echo of the woman he had fallen in love with. This woman was a ghost.

The seconds started to pass by painfully, but Tempest still didn't move. He longed to call her name, to get her to turn around, but his mouth remained shut. His heart fought for dominance but his mind remained in power of his actions.

Satine was about to walk away, herself, when she felt conscious of her surroundings. The uncomfortable itch that came with being watched flooded her senses, and against her better judgment she turned around, her eyes scanning the corridor that stretched behind her.

It was empty.

"Everything all right, m'lady?" One of her guards asked when she frowned at the sight, confused not only at the corridor's emptiness, but the reason why she felt someone should be there in the first place.

"No…no, I'm quite fine." Satine reassured, sending the corridor one last glance, the frown still in place. Then she turned around, walking away so she could return to her own temporary apartment, her guards shadowing her every step.

Tempest watched her leave, regretting that he had invaded her mind like that, twisting her perception of what she saw. He had promised her once that he would never use the force against her and until now, he had kept it. But then again, a part of him whispered, that wasn't his Satine.

His gloved hands clenched at his sides, though not in anger. Tempest turned, going back the way he had come, determined to get out of the place as soon as possible.

No one was there to notice his eyes were no longer yellow.

"Why do you even like these stupid pod races anyway?" Viscera asked Vader, who tore his gaze away from the holo screen for a only few seconds so he could send her a glare.

"They are not stupid, snips. I used to be a pod racer myself." Vader kept his eyes on the screen, wincing as one pod crashed and exploded into a canyon wall. Meanwhile, Viscera's lips had curled up to form a face of pure disgust.

"You raced in one of them rust buckets?" Viscera exclaimed in disbelief, Vader now turning his full attention towards her.

"Those rust buckets, are very hard to pilot. I was the only human to ever manage it and one of the most successful racers this galaxy has ever seen. The first time I finished a race I won, and I kept winning until I was more or less the galaxy's undisputed champion. How else do you think I managed to own that palace on Tatooine?" He explained, an edge to his voice that Viscera chose to ignore. In response to his question, Viscera just shrugged, barely affected by his grand claims.

"To be fair, I thought Tempest had bought you that place. Or at least, killed the person who owned it."

"I did no such thing, apprentice. However, Vader did kill the previous owner of his other palace and I can't deny my part in that." Viscera whirled her head to see Tempest entering the apartment from the balcony, two bags carried in between his arms. Vader stood up to go help him, even though his eyes drifted back to the holo screen that still displayed the pod races a few times.

"Where did you go? I've been stuck watching Vader's stupid pod races for hours." Viscera complained, standing up as well so she could go help the two men. Vader had already moved to the kitchen to unpack the food Tempest had brought back to eat, though his voice still could be heard when he responded to Viscera's remark.

"For the last time, they are not STUPID!" He yelled, Viscera sharing a knowing smile with Tempest, who smiled knowingly back.

Both of them didn't say a word, instead moving to the small, cramped dining area that was part of the living space to set the table. Vader soon brought the food out, all three of them wasting no time in sitting down to eat.

While Vader and Viscera continued to tease and annoy each other, Tempest stayed quiet, his yellow eyes flicking to look at the Senate building through the open balcony more than once. Viscera didn't notice, still not familiar with how Tempest worked, but Vader did. He didn't mention it, not in front of Viscera but later, when Viscera had retired for the night, he did confront his Master about it. After all, even for Sith their relationship was an unorthodox one. They weren't just Master and Apprentice, they were family. They were as close as brothers, even if neither of them admitted it.

"What's wrong?" Tempest turned to see Vader come stand next to him, his eyes following Tempest's gaze to the Senate building. Tempest had been leaning against the balcony railing, eyes set on Coruscant's skyline, the mushroom shaped Senate building nestled among them.

"Nothing." Tempest easily replied, returning his gaze to the skyline.

"Right, and I haven't seen that look before." Vader lied obviously, earning a sharp glare from Tempest. Vader, however, was not so easily deterred. "You can tell me, Obi-Wan." Vader reassured, softer this time. It seemed to work, for Tempest sighed, his shoulders slumping in defeat.

"I saw her, Anakin. I saw Satine." He admitted, making Vader's eyes widen in shock. The Sith Apprentice turned his own gaze to the skyline, his mind whirling in an effort to take in the information. There was silence between them for a while, before Vader finally got his voice back.

"Oh...That's definitely a problematic development." He managed to say, rather stupidly really. Tempest made an effort to point that out.

"No, you don't say." Sarcasm and a bitter undertone laced Tempest's words, Vader throwing a concerned frown his Master's way, an unusual sight associated with a Sith.

"Look, I'm sorry. I've never jumped into alternate dimensions before where my best friend's dead wife is alive, ok? All of this is just as new to me as it is to you." Vader snapped, turning his gaze away from Tempest so he didn't need to see the pain flash across his friend's face. He ended up sighing just like Tempest had done, lost for words, except for the one question that mattered. "What are you going to do?"

"I don't know, Anakin. She's not her, she'll never be her but..." Tempest trailed off, not daring to say the words himself.

"At the same time she is." Vader finished for him, still not looking at Tempest. The Sith Master himself didn't look at him either. "Do what you want, Obi-Wan. Don't think about the Jedi, our plan, none of it. If you don't want to see her, fine thats that. If you do... then we'll change the plans. We'll make it work. We're in this together, every step of the way."

Tempest turned to meet Vader's gaze this time, even though he still didn't say word. He didn't need to. Neither did Vader.

They both turned their gazes back to the coruscant skyline, the night sky overlooking the skyscapers that were lit up with light, speeders racing between them. In the centre, the Senate building stood, the home of an ally and a ghost.