10 | CHANGE

When Anakin returned, he returned with his mother's dead body. He had found her and she died right there in his arms after being abused and mutilated by those Tusken Raiders. Not only did Anakin come back with that, he came back a changed man. Not the same, ignorant and innocent boy Tara grew up with. She had seen him, within the fortnight, transform through his agony. It was genuinely terrifying to see him seethe.

Later, when Tara thought it was a good idea to approach him, he was fixing the shifter from the ship, which had broke. Without a word needing to come out of Tara's mouth, he began to vent. "I'm good at fixing things. Always was. But I couldn't... Why'd she have to die? Why couldn't I save her?! I know I could have!" Anakin was growing angry again, angry at himself and especially at the universe.

"Sometimes there are things no one can fix. You're not all-powerful, Ani." Tara shifted her weight on her feet.

"Well, I should be! Someday I will be. I will be the most powerful Jedi ever! I promise you. I will even learn to stop people from dying." Anakin spoke through his gritted teeth.

"Anakin." Tara placed her hand on his shoulder.

"It's all Obi-Wan's fault! He's jealous! He's holding me back! He's holding us back!" Anakin through the tool he was using.

"What did you do, Anakin?" Tara asked, scared to hear his response. Anakin grabbed her hand and held her close to him so that he couldn't run away in fear of him.

"I--I killed them.I killed them all. They're dead! Every single one of them. And not just the men...but the women...and the children too. They're like animals, and I slaughtered them like animals! I hate them!" Steam was practically coming out of Anakin's head. Anakin began to sob.

* * *

R2 called for Tara and Anakin to board their ship, as there seemed to be a message waiting for them. The message was from Obi Wan, so it must've been urgent. Obi Wan's hologram popped up and there he stood, in virtual form, before Tara and Anakin. "Anakin, Tara, my long-range transmitterhas been knocked out. Retransmit this message to Coruscant." Obi Wan began to speak and Tara turned around to press a button in the ship to begin transmitting the message.

"I have tracked the bounty hunter, Jango Fett...to the droid foundries on Geonosis. The Trade Federation is to take delivery of a droid army here...and it is clear that Viceroy Gunray...is behind the assassination attempts on Senator Amidala. The Commerce Guildsand the Corporate Alliance...have both pledged their armies to Count Dooku and are forming a--Wait. Wait." Obi Wan left the screen and seemed to become preoccupied with an outside attacker. The sounds of his lightsaber could be heard in the background while the sounds of blasts from some other weapon countered his lightsaber. Then, the message turned off.

The message fully sent to the Coruscant and then, Yoda and Windu began to transmit a message back to Anakin and Tara. "Tara, Anakin, we will deal with Count Dooku. The most important thing for you is to stay where you are. Protect the senator at all costs. That is your first priority." Windu ordered the two trainees that were already disobeying orders.

"Understood, Master." They replied in unison. Then, the transmission ended.

"They'll never get there in time to save him. They have to come halfway across the galaxy. Look," Tara began to worry about her master, "Geonosis is less than a parsec away."

"If he's still alive." Anakin muttered. 

"Ani, are you just gonna sit here and let him die? He's our friend, our mentor. He's---" Tara began.

"He's like my father! But you heard Master Windu. He gave us strict orders to stay here!" Anakin interrupted her.

"He gave us strict orders to protect Padmé. All we have to do is get her." Tara shrugged as she began to locate the lake country of Naboo in the ship's tracking system.

"We were about to get away from all this, and you're just ready to jump back into it." Anakin huffed.

"Into what? The life of a Jedi? We never chose this path. It chose us. And the more you resist it, the more unhappy you will be. We will worry about other things later. Let's go save Obi Wan." Tara told.

* * *

Just like that, Anakin and Tara went to go retrieve Padmé (with R2 and C3PO joining their crew) who very willingly accepted to tag along on the mission. "See those columns of steamstraight ahead? They're exhaust vents of some type." Padmé pointed out.

"That'll do." Anakin nodded and landed their ship in the smoky vents.

"Look, whatever happens out there, follow my lead. I'm not interested in getting into a war here. As a member of the senate...maybe I can find a diplomatic solution to this mess." Padme suddenly believed she was the person in charge in that mission. Tara wasn't quite sure why, but I supposed she believed because Anakin and Tara needed her to be by their side, she assumed that she was a key role in saving Obi Wan.

Anakin and Tara simply exchanged looks with one another, not daring to say a word to the senator.The three went on to enter the tunnels they had found by landing through the vents, leaving C3PO and R2 behind. As the three walked through the tunnel, Anakin and Tara instantly could hear and feel creatures lurking by. Tara pulled out her lightsaber but Anakin placed his hand in front of her. "Wait." He whispered to her.

Then, the moment one of the creatures they sensed around them jumped out at them, Anakin whipped out his own lightsaber and took them out. Like mosquitoes they came after Tara and Anakin one after another. Tara helped Anakin kill the rest off, then they all three ran away down the tunnel and into an enormous room with a mere ledge to stand on. The vast room was filled with moving parts, it looked like a factory of some sort. Before anyone could even react to what they were seeing, the door they entered through shut behind them and the ledge began sliding back into the wall, causing Tara and Padme to all fall onto a conveyor belt right below. Anakin was holding onto the door, dangling from the wall where he was. "Tara!" He shouted after her once the two women fell down.

The belt was moving too quickly for Tara to even try to climb out of it. She and Padme dodged and ducked every part of the assembly line that was smashing, cutting or pressing the product they stood on. Anakin jumped down from the wall and onto the belt to run after the girls.

More creatures that seemed to be manning the factory flew in and Tara used her saber to slice them in half. Once she found a reasonable opportunity, she jumped onto another platform, leaving Padme behind. Before long, the machinery was suddenly put to a stop. All factory work was halted. This gave Anakin, Padme and Tara time to flee. They all met down at the ground, but then they were confronted by some defense droids and a guard. "Don't move Jedi!" The guard pointed his gun at Anakin and Tara. "Take him away!" He instructed the droids. The droids surrounded the three and pointed their own blasters at them.

* * *

They were imprisoned and soon after sent out to an arena to be slaughtered. They were standing within the walls of the arena, their hands bound, awaiting to be sent out to their deaths. Tara was getting nervous. She didn't have her saber with her anymore and she doubted they would make it out of the barbaric fight alive. She took short, rapid breath and looked around nervously. "Don't be afraid." Anakin told her.

"I can't do this, Ani. I'm not ready to die." Tara's face twisted up as if she were about to cry.

"We're not going to die. Because we have something to live for. I have something to live for. You. I love you, Tara." Anakin confessed.

His word didn't help Tara at all. It only pained her more. She looked away from his sweet face. Though she did feel compelled to tell him that she loved him in return. "Look at me, T." Anakin felt hurt that she couldn't even bear to look at him in his eyes.

She didn't look at him. "Look at me, please!" He begged. Tara turned her head to give him one last gaze.

"Tell me you love me, too." His eyes were pleading.

But, she couldn't bring herself to it. Then, the cart they were in began moving into the arena. Tara and Anakin spotted Obi Wan tied up on one of the posts in the arena, and then, Padme, Anakin and Tara were tied up right next to him. The enormous crowd cheered to see the victims being presented. "I was beginning to wonder if you'd got my message." Obi Wan spoke loud enough so that Anakin and Tara could hear.

"I retransmitted it just as you had requested, Master. Then we decidedto come and rescue you." Anakin explained why they were in such a predicament.

"Good job." Obi Wan sarcastically noted.

The leader of the planet they were on began to speak to the crowd in a language unbeknownst to Tara. She recognized it as Geonosian, but she couldn't understand what he was saying to the crowd. As soon as he was done with his announcing, one the other side of the arena, a beast with three large horns was presented as their opponent. It let out an inhuman roar. Another creature was let out into the arena to fight, one with six legs and a thirst to kill. Then, there was the overactive beast with sharp teeth and claws that looked like it was hungry for a human sized snack. "I've got a bad feeling about this." Anakin commented.

"Just relax. Concentrate." Obi Wan told Anakin and Tara.

"What about Padme?" Tara asked Obi. He glanced over at her and smiled.

"She seems to beon top of things." Tara looked over at her and saw that he managed to release one of her hands form the cuff bindings and was beginning to climb the column they were chained to.

Tara waited for the creature with the sharp teeth to charge at her, then she jumped up on it to ride it. It wasn't expecting her to make such a move so it began to buck and kick to try to get her off of him. As he did so, he managed to break her chains and release her of them. She rode the sly little thing and managed to kill some guards beginning to swarm in on them. She spotted Anakin on the three horned creature with Padme and Obi Wan hitching a ride toward the exit, and Tara followed on her own creature. But, the moment they neared the path, more defense droids rolled in with their blasters armed and loaded.

Thousands of droids began charging in, surrounding the four. But, within seconds, hundreds of Jedi swarmed into the arena to fight the droids, saving the four. One Jedi neared Tara and tossed her her lightsaber that they found before entering the arena. She sighed in relief and used the beast she was riding to tear through the masses of droids. She slaughtered dozens of droids within seconds. Then continued to obliterate them. The droids kept coming in endlessly until finally one of their leaders signaled for them to back off. They threw down their arms and then Count Dooku began speaking loudly into the speaker phone of the arena. "Master Windu,you have fought gallantly...worthy of recognition in the archives of the Jedi order. Now it is finished. Surrender,and your lives will be spared."

"We will not be hostages to be bartered, Dooku!" Windu shouted back at him.

"Then, I'm sorry, old friend." Dooku sighed and then all the droids armed themselves once again.

But, once again, the Jedi came to the rescue. Yoda flew in on dozens of ships with clone troopers armed and ready to fight the droids. The clones dropped down into the arena and began fighting the droids, then, the Jedi hopped onto the ships to escape the battle once and for all.

* * *

As they were flying away from the battle, Anakin spotted Count Dooku making his escape as well. "Look over there! It's Dooku! Shoot him down!" He shouted.

"We're out of rockets, sir." The pilot informed Anakin.

"Follow him!" Anakin yelled.

"We're gonna need some help!" Padme exclaimed.

"There isn't time! Tara and I can handle this!" Anakin nodded curtly at Obi Wan who accepted the plan. Once the ship landed when Count Dooku escape, a hidden hangar, Anakin and Tara bolted after him. They found him in the building.

"You're gonna pay for all the Jedi that you killed today, Dooku." Anakin growled.

"We'll take him together. Go in slowly on the left." Tara whispered to Ani.

"I'm taking him now!" Anakin was angry and charged in. Dooku used his own powers to fling Anakin aside and electrocute him.

"No, Anakin! No! No!" Tara screamed.

"As you see, my Jedi powers are far beyond yours. Now... back down." Dooku threatened Tara.

Tara clenched her jaw and raised her lightsaber. He shot his pulses of electricity through the air but she managed to block it with her saver. "I don't think so." She hissed.

"Padawan, you disappoint me. Yoda holds you in such high esteem. Surely you can do better." Dooku chuckled, recalling how much Tara was praised by Yoda.

Dooku whipped out his own lightsaber. Tara charged in on him, her own lightsaber spinning and blocking every blow Dooku threw at her. Tara flipped over and tried to attack Dooku but he blocked her before she could chop his head off. "You can't use that trick on a Jedi, girl!" He spat.

She grunted then continued to swing her saber at him. She knew all of her moves were anticipated, so she had to come up with something new, and quick. She paused to throw Dooku off his game while he wondered why she would suddenly stop fighting. She used that opportunity to place her saber dangerously close to his throat. She smiled at him, but then, he managed to use the force to fling her away. He approached her and readied his own saber to finally end her life when Anakin rushed in to block his swing.

Dooku effortlessly spun his saber and chopped off Anakin's hand. Anakin let out a screech as he clutched his bleeding arm. Tara didn't hesitate to jump back up and go after Dooku. "I sense the dark side in you." Tara grunted as she and Dooku hit their sabers against one another.

"You know nothing. I've become more powerful than any Jedi." Dooku devilishly smirked.

Tara reached out her own hand and tried to use the same trick Dooku did earlier with the electricity power being redirected to blast someone with. She clenched her jaw and reached out her hand and a spark of the blue light erupted in the air. Dooku's eyes widened. He had never seen an untrained Jedi manage to do such a trick unless they were well graduated as Jedi. He could sense the immense power she had in her, and it was terrifying for him to be in such a presence. "This is just the beginning." Dooku spat right before he sped away and escaped on a ship out of the hangar.

Tara looked back over at a panting Anakin and rushed over to him. She held his head up in her lap. "Anakin." She spoke, gaining his attention.

He looked up at her. "I do love you, too." She admitted, hoping it'd give him some strength to hang on until help was to arrive.