Anakin Unbound
An Alternate History

The imposing, black-clad figure of Darth Vader stood in the ship's hallway, tightly gripping the Rebel commander's neck. Stormtroopers, having just taken the ship, surrounded their leader. The Rebel struggled in vain as Vader effortlessly lifted him off his feet by the throat. Staring into the horrifying, expressionless battle helmet of the Dark Lord, the Rebel trembled.

VADER: What have you done with those plans?

REBEL: We intercepted no transmissions. This is a consular ship. We're on a diplomatic mission!

The Rebel officer gargled through his answer. Vader could have choked him just as easily over the intercom, but as elegant as a ship-to-ship choke was, sometimes a demonstration of raw, brute strength was required.

VADER: If this is a consular's ship than where is the ambassador?!

Vader did not wait for the answer as he snapped the rebel's neck and dropped his lifeless body to the floor. Was it the strength of his mechanical hand, or his command over the mystical Force that so easily crushed the neck bones? The Stormtroopers knew better than to speculate. Vader was to be feared, that was enough for them. They all snapped to full attention as the Dark Lord turned to face them.

VADER: Commander, tear this ship apart until you've found those plans! And bring me the Ambassador, I want her alive.

The Stormtroopers scurried off to search the ship. Vader stood boldly, arms on his hips, in the hallway. The rest of the Rebel Alliance would surely fall before his blackened fist, just as these rebels had. Stormtrooper TK-1138, Vader's personal attaché, approached him and kneeled.

TK-1138: Lord Vader, once again you have guided us to victory.

Vader cast a menacing finger in his assistant's face.

VADER: It will not be a victory until we have secured the plans!

TK-1138: Yes, my Lord.

With that Darth Vader reached around the back of his armored visage and unlatched the self-contained gas mask unit. Pulling the back section of his battle helmet up, he lifted off the mechanical, skull-like front section. As the helmet rose completely off, the Dark Lord's brown hair, flecked with gray, fell about his face, partially obscuring the scar along his right eye. TK-1138 avoided his burning gaze. Staring at Vader's battle-helmeted appearance was frightening enough, but one did not know true fear until they looked the imposing Dark Lord of the Sith directly in the eye, and those few that did rarely lived to describe the rushing terror that gripped their hearts.

VADER: Now, return to my ship and inform them that we will depart as soon as I am through with the Ambassador.

Nodding his head, TK-1138 ran off to the airlock. Vader took a deep breath while surveying the fallen Rebels strewn about the hallway. None could stand before him; for his power was truly unlimited.

--

The two blue lightsabers clashed across the gap between skiff and droid and cast a shower of white sparks to the reddish molten lava right below.

ANAKIN: This is the end for you, my Master.

Driven by a ferocious rage, Anakin leapt from his precarious perch on top of the worker droid to the skiff. In the split second his attacker was righting himself on the tiny skiff's surface, Obi Wan thought he might have an advantage over his padawan. It quickly disappeared as his pupil thrust forward, unleashing a violent lightsaber assault. As the newly crowned Sith bared down upon his former master, Obi Wan recognized that he could not defeat Anakin on this skiff. However, as he fended off the saber strikes as best as possible, he also knew that he did not need to defeat Anakin at this moment. Seeing the hardened lava edge of the shore, the crafty Jedi Master jumped from the skiff to the overlooking lava slope. He surveyed the scene below him.

OBI WAN: It's over, Anakin. I have the high ground.

Anakin glared with frightening intensity.

ANAKIN: You underestimate my power.

Through his use of the force, Obi Wan glimpsed the future of Anakin's actions. It pained him, but in a millisecond, he saw what would happen. Anakin flung himself from the skiff, lightsaber posed above his head in a striking blow. Obi Wan's quick slash from left to right caught and severed both of his old friend's legs below the knees. As he untorqued his body to return the blow around, the back-sweep of his lightsaber met Anakin's left arm, cutting through the flesh and bone, leaving his former friend to tumble, horribly crippled, to the edge of the lava.

OBI WAN: Don't try it.

The gleam in Anakin's eye was intense and he jumped, just as Obi Wan had foreseen. With a tear in his heart, the Jedi Master brought his lightsaber around to the right to strike. He didn't want to do it, but he knew he had no choice. Only, he couldn't. Obi Wan moved the lightsaber out along the left of his body, ready to strike, but somehow he slowed down. Looking into Anakin's eyes as his former pupil's own lightsaber started its downward plunge, Obi Wan realized an awful truth; he had indeed underestimated Anakin's power. He was gripped by Anakin's hold on the Force and it would cost him. With a violent slash, Anakin's lightsaber tore through his former mentor's right arm, severing it below the elbow.

Obi Wan's lightsaber dropped from his now lifeless hand as he grasped the cauterized wound and prepared for the end. For a brief moment Anakin's eyes seemed to glow a venomous yellow.

OBI WAN: You were the Chosen One! It was said that you would, destroy the Sith, not join them. It was you who would bring balance to the Force, not leave it in Darkness!

Anakin seethed at Obi Wan's betrayal. He seethed at Padme's betrayal. His gaze was pure loathing.

ANAKIN: I hate you!

The enormity of Anakin's turn cut Obi Wan far worse than the lightsaber ever could have. He gladly would've died for Anakin on any number of occasions, but he never envisioned this death at his hands.

OBI WAN: You were my brother, Anakin. I loved you!

Anakin raised the lightsaber in his right hand over his head for the final blow. At that moment a lava geyser, agitated by the crumbling Mustafar control facility, erupted and sent a plume of lava towards the two warriors. Anakin leapt towards the top of the hardened lava slope as molten rock fell all around. One small piece hit Obi Wan on his back and he collapsed to the ground, screaming. From high on his vantage point, Anakin raised his left hand, intending to Force push the crumpled body of his teacher into the raging lava river. He paused. Whether it was just the shadows or a reflection off the lava, in that fleeting moment, Anakin's eyes appeared once again, to be brown. He lowered his hand.

ANAKIN: You should not come back, my master.

With that, he looked at the Jedi lightsaber in his right hand and glanced at Obi Wan's saber, lying at the lava river's edge, noticing the similarities. Anakain tossed away the Jedi relic, turned his back on his former teacher and strode out of sight. His lightsaber rolled down the lava slope, heading for destruction in the flow when it came to rest against the severed hand of Obi Wan Kenobi.

As he approached Padme's ship on the landing platform, Anakin gazed upon the collapsed body of his wife. Closing his eyes, he felt for felt for the love, the yearning that the two had once shared; he felt for her very presence. There was none. Instead he felt nothing. The metallic clamor of C-3PO rang out as he hurriedly ran down the ship's ramp.

C-3PO: I cannot detect any life signs on her! What are we to do, Master Anakin?

VADER: That name no longer has any meaning for me.

And with that, he coolly turned his back on Padme's lifeless body; Darth Vader raised the hood of his cloak over his head and headed towards his ship. His Empire called.