Author's Note: This is a story that I started in the first quarter of 2005. I haven't really written much on it, though I have an outline done. Since I just finished up the first Act of Heart of Darkness, I've been giving some thought on continuing this as a break from HoD. Let me know what you all think.

Fallen Angels

Prologue

Cka3ka

Naboo...

The mountains of Naboo were a cold, forbidding place where only the poorest of the citizens of Naboo lived. The men and women who lived in the villages amongst the pines of the valleys and on the grass rich slopes were pressed hard to make a living. As in all places where resources are scarce, people broke up into various factions to protect their own interests. Clans were formed and it was not unusual for one to fight another for precious grazing lands or mining territory. The people of the mountains of Naboo, were reserved, clannish, and stand-off-ish. Outsiders were welcome, but they were never allowed to ever enter the inner world of the clans--to see the true nature of the people of the mountain.

It had been nearly five years since he had last returned here to these lands of his birth; nearly ten years since he had last walked the slopes and forests that he loved. With a sigh he ran his hand through his thinning white hair and readjusted the backpack he had on. Few on Coruscant or even Theed would recognize him here. Instead of the lavishly rich and prohibitedly expensive robes that he wore as a badge of office, he wore simple brown pants and several layers of old shirts to keep warm. Even in summer, the temperature could drop quickly from the mid 80's to freezing in these lands.

On this trip he had shared bread and water with Clan Vaberrie. They didn't recognize him anymore, and he kept his manners similar to that of an outsider. They wouldn't question him and he could finish his meal in peace. It would save the hassle of killing them if they remembered him. When he was done, he politely thanked his hosts and went on his way.

He had arrived in these mountains last night, and dawn was just now breaking. He would have to hike hard to reach his destination and return before twilight. It was almost a 6 hour hike up and then another 5 or 6 down. Luckily, he knew these mountains well. He had grown from boyhood to manhood in these lands. He had been wed and had children. He had watched them grow and themselves marry and have children. The people of the clans married young. Senator Padme Nabierre would have been married off long ago had she not been selected to become the next queen, he thought with a hint of bitterness. Yet, he couldn't be unhappy with the situation as it was. The former Queen had wed Anakin Skywalker, and he couldn't be more delighted with the results. It was an unexpected boon--for them and for him.

As he hiked, he could feel the burdens of being Chancellor and of even being a Sith Master lift from his shoulders. The crisp clean air, the smells of the meadows, and the memories of the past. He could remember the feelings of holding his children and his lovely wife. He could remember playing Agak with the older men of his clan. He could remember the comradarie. All of it was lost to him now, but here he could at least remember and be at peace for a little while.

After an hour or so of upward climbing, he left the tree zone behind. Before him, were acres upon acres of wildflowers and meadowlands. Taking a sip of water from his canteen, Palpatine continued to climb upwards towards the clouds above. From moment to moment he would stop and collect a certain type of white and gold wildflower with seven petals unique to the mountains.

Another hour later, the meadows gave way to rock. Here, thousands of meters above sea-level nothing grew. Only gravel, marble, and granite graced the land. His hair began to ice as he entered a cloud and he stopped to remove warmer clothing from his backup. He had once taken pilgrimages here yearly, but since he had become chancellor he had only come here once and that early in his career. It took him another hour of climbing cliffs before he left the beaten trail and began a descent into a secluded valley. It was steep and dangerous. He knew many who had died on the way down, but he had always been an excellent climber and had no difficulties navigating his way down.

As he arrived at his destination he saw that he was not the only one to come here. There were signs of a recent arrival. Instinctively he reached into the force and felt another presence. It didn't surprise him at all that she'd be here. As he entered the grove, he saw the slight figure of a hooded woman he knew well wrapped in a dark red robe. The woman stood silently staring at several grave markers. They were simple slabs of rock without any inscriptions. Yet, Palpatine knew for whom each of those markers stood. For they stood in a grave yard where he had dug the graves himself. All around him were the members of his clan that had died here and in this grove were the graves of his wife, children, and grandchildren. Indeed, he didn't need inscriptions to know who lay in which grave. The memories were buried in his mind as he laid each of them to rest.

Without a word, he stepped past the woman and placed flowers on the graves of his family. Stepping back, he closed his eyes and said a small benediction.

"You have not been here for a long time," said the woman as he finished his prayer. "I did not expect you to see you here."

"The time draws near. Vengeance is at hand. I had to come," he explained simply. His eyes were still on the graves. It was on this very day that they had been set on the journey where so many of his loved ones had perished.

"I see," she said before falling back into silence.

"Is it not strange that we who are steeped in the dark side still care? We aren't much of Sith are we?" commented the woman. Her voice was soft and filled with sadness.

"Perhaps, but as long as the Jedi are eliminated, I could care less what is Sith and what is not. This title is but a tool to our ends."

"They will pay for what they did," she snarled, undoubtedly referring to the Jedi. "And for what they are doing to him now!"

Palpatine could feel the Dark Side swirl around her. The force ran strong in his family. Yet, he didn't get angry; he could only feel a profound sense of loss for himself and her.

They did not speak again. After all, they saw each other on Coruscant often. After ten or so minutes she turned and placed her hand on his shoulder in a tender gesture. She kissed his cheek and then left the grove to return to the capitol. He lay down on the grass next to his family. It had been so long since he had been here, and as the memories return he found himself missing them even after all this time. The Jedi would pay... every last one of them.

After almost another hour, he finally rose. He ran his hand over the graves of his children and grandchildren. He walked over to the grave of his wife and kissed her.

"I'll be back when I'm finished," he said to her. "It'll just be like old times then."

With a small burst of the force, he called his walking stick to him and put his backup back on. It would be a six hour hike back. Invigorating.

As he left the grove, he looked back one more time. He looked back to where the clan Naberrie had perished in the deep snows of winter from cold, hunger, and exhaustion.


A Day Later… Theed…

Aayla Secura moved swiftly through the deserted quarters of Theed racing for the star port. The beautiful blue skinned Twi'lek had been serving on the fronts under Obi-wan Kenobi, but she had been recalled several months earlier by Master Windu for a special assignment. Leads had appeared on the potential origins of the mysterious Darth Sidious. The Twi'lek Jedi had been on Theed for three weeks when she finally was able to penetrate a very secured area of the Naboo Royal Palace and what she had found disturbed her.

In her hand now was a disc that contained heavily encoded transmissions between the then Queen Amidala and her Senator to the Republic--the now Chancellor Palpatine. She hadn't been able to slice much of the records, but her force based intuition told her that these were essential to her search. What she had been able to see confirmed it. There had been an image of a droid speaking to a cloaked figure about the Naboo blockade and more importantly instructions on how the Queen could slip through the blockade. Those instructions were simply too detailed for it to have been a military assessment. Someone, the hooded figure, had orchestrated the escape of the Queen with an agenda. Secura knew that Amidala had brought down Chancellor Valorean.

There were no coincidences, only the force, she thought to herself as she walked. Worse, she knew she was being followed. Someone had learned that she had tapped the computers in Theed. The level security that required them to so quickly figure out her actions and then order a pursuit meant that someone very high in Amidala's entourage or even perhaps the Senator herself was involved.

Secura's force senses warned her of danger and she barely had more than a second to ignite her lightsaber and deflect two blaster bolts that came screaming out at her through the darkness of the night. She saw two sentients racing towards her and she leapt into action against her attackers.

She was amazed when the first attacker ducked her first slice. The two males split immediately apart, one behind her and one in front. They continued attacking but moved as they fired so that the blaster shots could not be reflected at them with ease.

Yet, despite their experience they were no match for a Jedi. She poured force energies into her legs and then sprang at the sentient in front of her. Her incredible speed caught him by surprise and he could only fire one shot--which was easily deflected by her--before he was cut down. Secura turned and deflected several other shots by the other man. She went after him, but he began running away from her firing over his shoulder. There was no time, she let the man flee and continued towards the star port where she had her ship.

Aayla felt relief well up in her as she entered the hanger where her ship was. She quickly went to the com console to notify whatever attendant was on duty to clear her for take off immediately. Her relief evaporated when there was no response. Her heart sank as she heard the door that she came through slide shut with a hiss. Yet, there was still hope. Her ship was armed with turbo lasers and she could blast her way out. Turning she ran towards the ship only to skid to a halt when she saw a hooded figure kneeling patiently in meditation waiting for her at the ramp leading into her ship.

There was no doubt that this person was dangerous. Secura ignited her saber and dropped patiently into a defensive stance. Yet, the dark robed figure made no move and simply continued to meditate. The figure seemed to ignore her presence.

"Who are you?" she asked the figure.

Silence stretched for almost a minute before the figure finally stood up and removed her hood. Behind the hood was the face of Senator Amidala and Secura felt shock run through her. Wait... that's not the senator! She had met the Senator several times and though this woman looked similar there were significant differences. The angle of the chin was different, the cheeks were a little higher, and she was slightly taller.

"Jedi." The word was said with such hatred that Secura shivered. A bright crimson beam stretched forth from the device in the other woman's hand. This was no ordinary foe. This was a Sith. Yet, strangely enough despite the snarl that now marred the face of the Amidala look-a-like, the woman didn't attack. She waited.

Secura knew that time was running out. Every second that she waited meant that more of the Sith's henchmen were on their way. She had to end this now and escape. Her course of action decided, Secura attacked and as she did so, she saw an amused smile appear on the face of the woman.

The two blades, blue and red, clashed again and again in a choreographed dance of death. Secura lost herself to the force and moved instinctively to defend herself from the attacks of the other. The Sith did not press her attack, she too fought defensively.

Secura felt rather than saw the hanger doors open and she could feel that reinforcements had arrived. That was not good since she was sure that these were not her allies.

There was no choice. She sank deeper into the force and went on the attack. With a cry and a flurry of blows she attacked the Sith. Her blade was a blur of blue light crashing down against the red blade. She continued to attack until the Sith caught her blade with her own and they stared deeply into each other's eyes. The smile was still on the other woman's face and Secura suddenly knew that she had been trapped.

The Sith had been toying with her. The moment their blades came apart she saw nothing but a blur of red. She opened herself to the force to defend herself but with every blow that she blocked she could feel her force senses beginning to fade away. Desperately she parried several more of the Sith's attacks, but as she did so she left herself open. The Sith didn't hesitate and slammed her with a Force push that sent Aayla crashing into the far wall. With a sickening thud, Aayla felt her arms and back break as she tumbled to the floor. She teetered on the edge of consciousness as she waited for the Sith to finish her.

Yet, the Sith did not move toward her. The black robed woman stopped and turned towards two approaching figures—one also robed in black, and the other dark red.

"Master," greeted the Sith politely.

Even as she struggled to cling to life, Aayla could feel the power radiating from both of the figures standing next to the Sith she had just fought. The hatred emanating from them was overwhelming. She craned her head up so that she could see the two figures, and seeing them she gasped. Horror took her as she recognized the Chancellor—who was obviously the Sith Master, and his other apprentice. No… the rule was broken! There were more than just the Master and the Apprentice.

"She's still alive," noted the red robed Sith as her gaze fell upon Aayla.

Aayla blanched at the strong feminine voice. She knew recognized it, but she had no time to place it before sizzling blue lightning tore into her and she became one with the Force.


Author's note: Let me know what you all think and if it's worth continuing.