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PALPATINE

Pray, see with mine eyes if thou’d understand:

One must look deep within the galaxy,

There to unlock its mysteries profound.

Aye, ev’ry aspect one must contemplate,

Not circumscribe oneself by Jedi thought.

If thou a learnèd leader would become,

Thou must have sight to see the Force entire:

For only then shalt thou awaken to

The absolute potential of the Force.

Beware the Jedi, Anakin, who’d see

Thee slumber on, oblivious to this.

The course that heals thy blindness leads through me,

And through the teaching I to thee impart.

Know thou the mighty dark side of the Force

And thou shalt rescue Padmé—thine own wife—

From certain death, the sight thou hast each night

A’plaguing all thine awful, prescient dreams.

ANAKIN

[
aside:
] What are these words, which do mine ears confound?

How can he know of Padmé and my dreams?

PALPATINE

Use thou my knowledge, Anakin, I beg thee.

[Anakin brandishes his lightsaber.

ANAKIN

My vision now is clear: you are the Sith,

The one who would th’Republic overthrow!

PALPATINE

Thy worries and thy troubles I do know.

But listen to me, I’ll reveal the truth:

The Jedi Council plays with thee as if

Thou wert a pawn in their malicious game.

Instead, be thou a knight unto my king,

Take thou the high position due to thee

At my right hand. As long as I’ve watch’d thee,

I’ve seen thee waiting on the perfect move:

Thou searchest for a higher, better life—

No Jedi’s pawn, but fame across the board.

Thou hast thy lightsaber, and thou canst play:

Shalt thou my small life forfeit and make checkmate?

ANAKIN

I may, I can, I would.

PALPATINE

—I feel thy burn,

The passion smoldering inside thine heart,

The anger of a Knight prepar’d to strike:

It gives thee focus, makes thee mightier—

Mayhap for the first time, thou art alive,

Awakening unto a future path.

[Anakin puts down his lightsaber.

ANAKIN

This to the Jedi Council I shall tell,

And let you ply your strategy ’gainst them.

Your punishment they shall devise anon.

PALPATINE

’Tis as I would expect, yet I do sense

Thou art uncertain still of their intent.

ANAKIN

I shall unveil the truth as time allows.

PALPATINE

Thy wisdom doth excel, mine Anakin:

Learn thou the dark side of the Force with me;

Thou shalt untangle Padmé’s knotted fate.

Until then, in my quarters I’ll remain,

That thou may do with me as thou think’st right.

[Exit Palpatine.

ANAKIN

O, wherefore have I sought to know the truth?

Why seek for knowledge when ’tis this I find?

My mentor Palpatine, the hated Sith!

Yet doth he hold the pow’r to vanquish death?

His words do burrow deep into my soul,

His promise seems to me a paragon—

To conquer over one’s impermanence,

To grant my Padmé immortality!

For such as these I’d give the world entire,

Yet shall I join the evil Sith withal?

Nay, Anakin, remember who thou art:

A Jedi noble, train’d by Obi-Wan,

The husband of an honorable lass,

Protector of the strong Republic’s cause.

Shall I trade these for what the Sith doth vow,

Refuse my past and cling to Palpatine?

The man hath been a mentor true and good,

His favor and his care for me I can

No more deny than mine own self. O, heav’ns,

How deeply you at once do touch me! Fie—

Confusion doth o’erwhelm my troubl’d soul,

O’erpowering my judgment by its fog

And turning dark to light, and light to dark.

I shall away and Master Windu tell:

Thus Fate may knit me unto heav’n or hell.

[Exit Anakin.

SCENE 3.

On the planet Utapau.

Enter
G
ENERAL
G
RIEVOUS
, N
UTE
G
UNRAY
, W
AT
T
AMBOR
, S
HU
M
AI
, S
AN
H
ILL
, P
OGGLE THE
L
ESSER,
other
MEMBERS OF THE
C
OUNCIL OF
S
EPARATISTS
,
and several
BATTLE DROIDS
and
M
AGNA
G
UARDS
.

GRIEVOUS

But little time shall pass, and we shall be

Track’d by the armies of th’Republic here.

I shall, therefore, send all of you unto

The system Mustafar in th’Outer Rim.

A planet of volcanoes ’tis, where ye

May safe remain until the threat hath pass’d.

NUTE

Safe, ha! Did Palpatine not flee your grasp?

Methinks I’d be a fool to trust these words,

For sans Count Dooku I am fill’d with doubt

At your ability to keep us safe.

O, say not safe, sly General—ne’er safe.

Enter
O
BI
-W
AN
K
ENOBI
above, on balcony, listening.

GRIEVIOUS

You, Viceroy, should have gratitude enow

That you’ve not felt the power of my grasp.

Behold, your ship awaiteth at the dock

And flies direct to Mustafar anon.

[Exeunt Nute, Wat, Shu, San, Poggle, and other council members.

OBI-WAN

I may not have another chance to meet

This Grievous face-to-face; the time is now.

[Obi-Wan leaps from the balcony and lands next to Grievous.

My greetings, General—we meet again.

GRIEVOUS

Ah, General Kenobi, you are bold.

My fearless droids, kill him upon the instant!

[Several MagnaGuards approach Obi-Wan threateningly. He uses the Force to make part of the ceiling collapse onto them, destroying them.

OBI-WAN

Your bodyguards should guard their bodies, ha!

They are but chaff to me—a Jedi Knight!

GRIEVOUS

All back away, remove yourselves from us:

I shall destroy this Jedi filth myself.

OBI-WAN

Your move, O, grievous, feeble General.

GRIEVOUS

Those words shall be your last, you noisome fool—

Count Dooku train’d me in the Jedi arts.

[Grievous removes his robe to reveal four arms, each holding a lightsaber.

Lay on, Kenobi, if you’d dare!

OBI-WAN

—Forsooth!

[Grievous approaches Obi-Wan while spinning two of his lightsabers, carving grooves in the ground as he does so.

[
Aside:
] What frightful trick of baseborn hell is this?

I see that he hath arm’d himself so well,

Mine only recourse is to take his arms—

One at a time, if ’tis what’s needed. Ho!

[They duel. Obi-Wan strikes one of Grievous’s hands, severing it.

GRIEVOUS