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Anakin's blade stopped short of its target, but not by his will, nor by a sudden defensive manuever by Obi-Wan. As the blue-light energy arced toward Obi-Wan's mid-section, a brilliant line of bright violet intercepted it, and Anakin was knocked backwards by the strength behind that light.
As if coming out of a dream, he blinked his eyes to see Master Windu standing there, staring back at him in disbelief, the Jedi Master's lightsaber extended in front of Obi-Wan's defenseless form.
Startled by the sound of another clash of blades, Obi-Wan had looked up in time to see Anakin stumble backward. He was surprised by Master Windu's proximity to him, but later remembered Windu had not joined the others upstairs, having been determined to fix the slave rig on the remote units.
For a long moment, none of the three Jedi spoke, but finally Master Windu, eyes still bright and fixed on Anakin, whispered in a hoarse tone, "Anakin, what are you doing?"
Anakin had no answer, no answer at all, as he stood trembling, his still-human arm suddenly hanging limply with the blade clutched between cold fingers.
"Disarm yourself, Anakin." Windu spoke in the same ragged whisper, that rose as Anakin made no sign of having heard him. "Disarm, NOW."
Anakin, looking again as if he had just woken up from a nightmare, absently flicked the switch on the lightsaber Obi-Wan had made and given to him. The muscles in his hand spasmed and he dropped it to the floor with a clatter. Anakin's eyes were wet as he met Obi-Wan's gaze, with his Master slowly lowering and extinguishing his own blade.
"I'm sorry, Master .... I'm so sorry, I ... I."
Anakin bowed his head and Windu shot a glance to Obi-Wan, who nodded. Pulling his cloak around him, Windu moved abruptly to the door and exited, where he was met by the observation party. Mace Windu knew Yoda had seen the truth in Anakin's eyes, but for the remainder of the delegation, particularly President Nupro, the cover story that Skywalker's cybernetic hand had malfunctioned, leaving him powerless to control his actions, would hold for now.
Obi-Wan let Anakin weep briefly before addressing him.
"Do you know what happened to you, Anakin?"
His tall Padawan finally summoned the courage to look up, and he nodded humbly.
"The Dark Side."
Obi-Wan nodded slightly.
"Yes, remember what Master Yoda has always taught, the Dark Side is quick to join you in a fight. But a Jedi never loses control of himself or his actions, Anakin. The Force is his ally, not his Master. You have to be able to keep your feelings in check, lest the Dark Side tempt you again."
The words stung Anakin, as much as when he had vowed in the weeks after avenging his mother's death that he would never touch the Dark Side again. But here in this chamber, surrounded by the teachers he most respected and the woman he loved, it had nearly consumed him, and directed him toward murder.
He took a deep breath, bent at the knees and picked up the fallen lightsaber, presenting it handle first back to Obi-Wan.
"Here, Master, the blade belongs to you. I shouldn't have let you take the blame for not constructing my own."
Obi-Wan nodded.
"Thank you, Anakin, we'll have to start your new sword soon as well, or Master Yoda will have us dusting the archives in place of the maintenance droids."
The joke brought a light smile to Anakin's face, but he just nodded. Obi-Wan stood still another moment then broke the silence.
"I'm going back to my quarters to rest before my next strategy session, we can talk about what lesson to pursue when I return for dinner tonight."
Anakin gave a quiet "Yes, Master." and watched Obi-Wan leave the chamber, leaving him quite alone. He wandered over to the remotes that Master Windu had been working on, and in less than a minute, located the problem, quickly restoring the remotes to working order.
With nothing to do and Padme probably still among the tour group led by the Chancellor and Master Yoda, Anakin picked up another of the training facility's sabers and lit its blue blade as the remotes rose to life in complex shapes above, around and behind him.
Anakin Skywalker stared deep into that blue-white light ...
