Chapter 242: Concludes
Lightsabers flashed in brilliant arcs. The Force surged and collided.
Anakin refused to strike back, focusing purely on defense. But even his considerable skill couldn't withstand an assault from this many Jedi Masters at once.
Wounds accumulated across his body. Blood dripped from a dozen cuts.
"Surrender, Anakin," Obi-Wan urged. "If you've been wronged, we'll make it right."
"It wasn't me." Anakin raised his head, defiant despite his injuries. "Why should I surrender?"
"Still stubborn." Mace Windu advanced, lightsaber raised.
A spatial rift tore open the air. Raven emerged, landing between the Jedi and his student.
"Do you take me for dead?" The corvid's voice cut like a blade. "You dare attack my student?"
"Anakin says Palpatine was a Sith Lord, so he was a Sith Lord. What's the problem with killing him? Keep pushing this, and I'll have the Big Guy announce that the Jedi Order conspired with the Sith to start this war and seize power."
His eyes glinted with cold challenge. "Let's see who the Republic's citizens believe—his word, or yours."
The Jedi Knights exchanged uncertain glances and took a collective step back. Raven's arrogance was matched only by his credibility with the public.
"Mr. Raven..." Anakin's eyes reddened when he saw his teacher.
No matter how capable or powerful he was, he was still just a young man. When cornered and accused, he desperately wanted someone in his corner.
"We saw him kill Chancellor Palpatine with our own eyes," Obi-Wan said carefully. "Mr. Raven, are you certain you want to shield him?"
No one doubted Raven would make good on his threat. His influence with the Emperor made him dangerous.
Palpatine had already spent years poisoning public opinion against the Jedi Temple—magnifying their flaws, spreading rumors, stoking resentment. Many factions within the Republic already viewed the Jedi with suspicion.
With the Emperor's backing, Raven could easily paint them as villains.
But the Jedi Order had always stood for justice. They wouldn't bend to threats or retreat from fear.
"Master Raven, understand Anakin is your student, I do. Trust him, you do, yes," Master Yoda said diplomatically. "Clear, the evidence is. Hidden truth here, if there is, investigate properly, we must."
"Palpatine was the Sith Lord," Anakin insisted. "He forced his dark side power into me before dying, just to frame me."
"We have no evidence he was a Sith Lord," Mace Windu said sternly. "Only that you killed him while saturated with dark Force energy. If you're innocent, why refuse investigation?"
"There may be a misunderstanding here, yes," Yoda added, "but submit to examination, you must. Clear your name, this will."
Raven looked at the stubborn Jedi Masters and sighed internally. He couldn't simply eliminate them; they were fundamentally good people.
"Fine. Let's investigate thoroughly. Starting with the victim himself—Palpatine."
The Jedi Masters exchanged confused looks.
"He's dead, Mr. Raven," Qui-Gon pointed out.
"Simple enough. I'll bring him back."
Obi-Wan shook his head. "That's impossible. The dead cannot—"
"That applies to you. Not to me."
Light flared from Raven's form and cascaded over Palpatine's mangled corpse. Gruesome wounds sealed themselves at visible speed.
Palpatine's eyes snapped open. He gasped and coughed violently.
The Jedi Masters recoiled in shock. They'd confirmed his death themselves. How was he breathing?
Palpatine's pupils dilated with genuine terror. This was completely outside his calculations. Even he didn't understand what was happening.
Raven settled on Anakin's shoulder. "Now we can investigate properly."
The Jedi Masters looked at each other uncertainly. Finally, Mace Windu stepped forward.
"Chancellor Palpatine, Anakin has accused you of being a Sith Lord. What do you have to say?"
"Sith Sith?" Palpatine's confusion seemed genuine. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Then what happened here?" Mace pressed. "Why would Anakin kill you?"
Palpatine made a show of recalling events. "After Anakin entered the bridge, Count Dooku called him 'apprentice.' Anakin addressed Dooku as 'master' before immediately attacking and killing him. He muttered something about Sith tradition requiring apprentices to kill their masters to claim power."
"Then Anakin rushed at me, saying he needed to silence me. Once I was dead, he said, no one could stop him from seizing power with Mr. Raven's help and ruling the galaxy."
Anakin's expression darkened. "That's a complete fabrication. You're slandering me."
"How could I, a helpless old man, possibly be this Sith Lord he claims?" Palpatine looked plaintively at the Jedi Masters, then at Raven. "Master Raven, I know Anakin is your student, but he's committed terrible crimes that affected billions. Surely you'll handle this fairly."
"This will absolutely be handled fairly," Raven said calmly.
Palpatine sneered internally, confident he'd won.
Anakin felt his world crumbling.
Flames ignited in Raven's eyes. Strange power rippled outward from him in concentric waves.
The scene around them began rewinding like reversed footage, stopping when Anakin and Palpatine first started speaking.
"Even in death, I'll drag you down and cement your reputation as a traitor."
The past-Palpatine's voice echoed through the bridge as he forced dark side energy into Anakin's body, then collapsed dead.
Moments later, the Jedi Masters burst through the doors.
The mystery unraveled before everyone's eyes.
Palpatine's face went ashen.
The Jedi Masters who now knew the truth trembled with fury. They'd almost condemned an innocent man.
"My plan was flawless," Palpatine whispered, voice hollow with despair. He stared at Raven. "Who are you? Ever since you appeared, everything I've built has crumbled."
"I've known you were the Dark Lord of the Sith from the beginning," Raven said. "I simply waited for the right moment to expose you."
He turned to the Jedi Masters. "Take him away. He deserves trial, not summary execution."
The Jedi Masters escorted Palpatine from the bridge. Only Yoda, Mace Windu, and other Council members remained.
"Master Raven, if you knew he was the Dark Lord, why didn't you stop him?" Yoda's voice carried genuine confusion. "Why allow this war to continue, you did?"
Anakin looked at Raven, equally curious.
"We're outsiders. We have no right to dictate this universe's fate. Training Anakin was the greatest contribution we could offer."
Raven's tone grew more serious. "Besides, light and dark exist in balance here. Any action that disrupts that balance invites disaster. This crisis emerged because the Jedi Temple grew too powerful while the dark side was constantly suppressed."
"The dark side has destructive aspects, yes. But constantly resisting it through asceticism and emotional suppression, controlling the Force through absolute tranquility, only causes accumulated darkness to erupt with catastrophic force eventually."
"You must learn to acknowledge the anger, greed, and fear within yourselves. Only then can you truly master the Force."
He lectured the Jedi Masters on the path of balance, warning them against blindly pursuing light while rejecting darkness entirely.
With Count Dooku dead and Palpatine arrested, the war that had raged for years finally ended.
Anakin became a Republic hero for his role in protecting Coruscant. Under the Emperor's guidance, with support from Padmé and the Jedi Temple, he entered politics.
He became the youngest and most influential senator in Republic history, determined to prevent future wars through political reform.
Anakin pushed sweeping changes across economic, political, and military spheres. He reduced wealth inequality between star systems and established better interstellar infrastructure. He cracked down on smuggling while protecting legitimate trade.
Under his leadership, the Republic flourished with renewed vitality.
After establishing stability, he began constructing the cross-universe anchor points according to Raven and the Emperor's specifications. Once the Empire built matching anchor points in their realm, the two universes could maintain permanent communication.
With everything accomplished, Raven's mission in the Force Universe reached its conclusion.
"Support Anakin. Stay with him," Raven told Padmé. "Don't let him lose his way."
Don't let him fall to darkness as his original fate intended.
"I will, Mr. Raven." Padmé nodded firmly. "As long as I'm alive, he won't stray."
Raven turned to Anakin. "Take care of yourself. If you face something you can't handle alone, find me."
Reluctance showed clearly on Anakin's face. "I understand. After you leave... will you forget me?"
"Never. You're family, Anakin. The Terra Palace is your home, always."
The Emperor's eye twitched slightly at that declaration.
'Terra Palace is mine, you feathered freeloader. You can't just hand out invitations to my house. Where does that leave me, the actual owner?'
Valdor carefully avoided looking at the Emperor, afraid he'd burst out laughing at his master's petty frustration.
After saying farewell to everyone, Raven opened a spatial passage and led the group back to the Transformers Universe.
Without anchoring to a specific time coordinate, considerable time had passed there as well.
[End of Chapter]