Chapter three:
Disclaimer: I own nought
Padme Skywalker listened with pride and happiness as the chancellor, Gerald Calissan finally announced the passing of the act that banned slavery. She had worked hard to pass this act for over twenty years and finally she had succeeded and now slavery was to be banned. That meant that the people were much happier and all had equal opportunities of freedom.
"This act will allow the people to be treated with fairness, equality and allow everyone to have the same chances of life!" the chancellors voice boomed, the senates large round house magnifying and echoing the sound. Padme smiled again, happy that one of her largest ambitions for the past twenty years had been achieved.
It was last now and to be honest she was completely surprised that the act had actually been passed and that the senate had not gone into recess. She was tired and wanted to go home now that she had what she wanted. However it was not to be.
As the chancellor was about to announce the suspension of the senate for the day a dark navy uniformed police officer charged in the main auditorium from one of the sides and hopped onto one pods. His brow was sweaty and the first thing he did was to guide the pod straight next to the chancellors. He engaged in a very heated conversation with the chancellor as the rest of the senate watched on, curious as to the sudden interruption.
Finally the chancellor raised his head and to her surprise, the chancellor's gaze strayed over to herself. "Senator Skywalker, as minister of policing and state security please follow this officer, it is a matter of great urgency." The rest of the senate burst out into loud whisperings and Padme herself was extremely shocked. In her twenty three years of serving in this senate, no emergency had been too great so she had to be withdrawn from a session. She nodded her head politely and directed her pod to where the navy officer was stood waiting.
She silently followed the officer down a corridor into a briefing room where two more navy blue officers stood. They were visibly shaken and tense. "Hello there, what is the matter that requires my urgent attention?" Padme asked politely, curious about the whole situation.
"We have a slight situation on our hands milady," the officer said. "Three hours ago thirteen slavers were murdered by a man. This man has now been arrested."
Padme was confused. "No offence or such but how is this urgent matter?" she asked. The officer gave Padme a wry smile before putting his hand down his pocket and producing a small holo-disk.
"Perhaps you should watch this milady?" the officer said as he loaded the disk into the media player which was already set up and ready in the room. Padme watched with interest as it showed a random speeder park near the outskirts of the city. A child was cleaning a speeder and an old man was watching, whip in hand. Padme immediately felt revolted by this but she knew this sort of thing would stop now that the act had been passed.
Then she watched even closer as a tall man approached the older man, his face hidden due to the location of the camera. He had sandy blonde hair and was quite visibly strong and well muscled. They talked for a while and then Padme watched in horror as he saw the old man raise the whip only for the tall man to catch it, and then do the same again when it was yanked out. She watched as the older man suddenly produces a blaster. What she saw next made her heart miss a beat.
The blaster literally flew out the older mans hand and then snapped as it flew into the tall mans hand. Padme had last seen something like that over twenty three years ago; it was a known fact that there was no trained force sensitive's living in the city. Then she watched further as the man suddenly pulled out a gleaming white lightsaber and began to slaughter the oncoming slavers as if they were mere dust.
Then the mans lightsaber deactivated and then fired out something out his hands Padme had only seen performed by one person. Count Dooku. But this surely was not Dooku, who was rotting within the dark side of the force by now, plus this man was young. What frustrated Padme was throughout the whole video not once did it capture the mans face. Finally the video stopped and Padme was momentarily too stunned to speak.
The officers looked for a reaction. Finally she spoke. "How did you manage to arrest him?" Now the officer gave another small smile again.
"Funny, he actually just deactivated his weapon and told the officer there at the time that he will go along with them as long as they don't confiscate his weapon. We're unsure what to do milady. He's the first force sensitive in here for, well….ever. The standard procedure for murder is execution but none of the officers wont dare to go near him and plus, he actually killed those slavers to help the children, if you watch the video again you'll probably notice that he actually told the children to run before he got arrested." Padme was silent as she thought of what to do.
If this was a Jedi who was slain fighting the empire then perhaps he could be of help. But no, that couldn't be right, this man was young, very young and the Jedi died out over twenty three years ago. Perhaps he was a sith? But again that made no sense and neither could the explanation of him being a Jedi. Plus, even if he were a Jedi, not many would go and kill slavers no matter what they did.
"You said you had a picture of the man?" The man nodded and then from his dark navy uniform produced six small sized photos of mug shots. He handed them to Padme. Padme looked at them. Then she visibly shook.
They were pictures of a man standing head straight and proud in a mug shot, his pride still high. They were pictures of the man Padme had thought about every single day for the past twenty three years and his image was permanently etched in the back of her head. It was the one who she would literally do anything to be reunited and to be reacquainted with, her husband, lover and her best friend, the only one who she trusted above anything – Anakin.
Even after what he had done to her at Mustafar and the seemingly eternal lists of crimes he committed, Padme knew that it was not Anakin who was committing those acts but an evil force who had taken his mind known as Vader. "He still looked the same," Padme thought, happy that the beautiful face of her husband was not changed. Still she was baffled as to how he had not changed over the past twenty three years, or perhaps that he had died a long time ago and she never found out. He had obviously gained his way back to the light; otherwise he would not even be here.
She suddenly felt the need to find answers. However, she wanted full unbiased answers. One of the officers noticed her blanch face. "Milady, do you recognize this person?" Padme did not know whether to lie or not, so she decided to say a stretched truth.
"I've met him a few times when I was alive. I want to meet him. Call my office and to get me a heavily concealing cloak. The man must not see my face, do you understand?" Padme requested. Then officer nodded before raising a comlink to his mouth and the dialing a frequency.
Anakin waited in silence in his small jail cell. For the first time for twenty three years he felt a slight fear in his mind. He was not afraid of death again. He had welcomed death what seemed like only a few hours ago, no that was not what he feared.
He feared two things. He feared failure yet again. In the world he had chosen the wrong path and that lead to the slaughter of many millions and those he loved. He had failed for twenty or so years in the real world. His failures had to be corrected by the suffering of his two flesh and blood, something he hated himself for ever since he realized who the identities of Luke and Leia really were. They weren't the only ones.
Owen and Beru Lars. They had treated his mother so well before she was taken and how did he repay them? By ordering cruel mindless stormtroopers to kill them and then ruthlessly burn their bodies. Finally Anakin thought of her. It was always about her. Dreams plagued his mind every single time he rested from his fatigue and they were always the same. About her. About her dying, and about himself killing her, his angel, his own true star from heaven. He destroyed it all, he knew he had everything and now he had nothing. Such was the fatalities of power.
If he were to be lost now for his crime of murder, he would fail her again and never meet her again, not even in death. Anakin sighed. He did not want anger to run free in his head again. He had to control his emotions.
His cell door opened. Anakin looked up to find four officers each with blasters pointed at his head look down at his form sat in the corner, face blank and looking as if he could not care less. The officers approached a step at a home, all having been briefing and saw the video of what this prisoner was capable of. They were all perfectly aware that the man was still armed, very dangerous and could break out any time he wanted. They were confused why he had not, and what his motive was.
The two nearest to Anakin walked even closer. "Stand up prisoner." Anakin immediately got up, alert as to what was going on.
"Where are you taking me?" Anakin asked, his voice betraying no forms of emotion. The guards hesitated before the leader finally replied. He went behind Anakin, cuffed his hands whilst his partner grabbed one arm and he grabbed the other. The other two still had their blasters drawn to his head.
"You will see," the leader vaguely replied before escorting Anakin out of the cell. He was dragged down a sterile corridor that was dimly lit and then they stopped outside of a metal security codes door. The leader knocked on the door and within a few seconds the door was opened from the inside.
Anakin stepped in, or rather was forced him and he looked around. There were four more officers in here, all with their blasters pointed at him. Anakin did not care and that was not what was drawing his attention. Stood with its back facing again and its face against the wall, a short hooded figure stood with its arms stood loosely by its side
"Milady, I have bought the prisoner to be here as you have asked," the leader who had approached Anakin said and then bowed. The woman turned its head round, its head masked by the dark heavy hood.
"Thank you commander, now please, leave us." There were small gasps around the room as the others officers were completely surprised at the request.
"But milady!" the commander protested. "You will be in danger if we were to leave, this man here has-," however he was quickly interrupted by the sharp tongue of the woman, who spoke in a strange accent.
"I am perfectly aware of what his man has done commander," the woman rasped. "However, do not worry, I have my own protection," the woman said, pointing to a blaster that hung by her hip hidden partially by her large cloak. Anakin wanted to bite a retort at this point; telling her that the blaster would be useless against him, but he decided now was not the time for humor. Plus Anakin was curious as to what this woman wanted.
The commander hesitated as he looked around his men, deciding what to do. Finally he conceded. "Very well Milady, however we will be waiting on this corridor and should we hear anything or it has gone twenty minutes and you are still not out then we will come in!" The woman briefly nodded as the officers began to file themselves out.
Finally when the officers had all finally left and the door clanged shut with a slight hiss Anakin turned to the hooded woman. "Who are you and what do you want?" The woman turned to look at him, the shadow of the heavy cloak still covering her face.
"I am the minster of the cities policing and crime, it's not everyday that we come across a force sensitive here, in actual fact we've never come across one. You're the first," the woman replied. "As for what I am here for? We'll you've committed twelve murders and I would like to know why." Suddenly her tone of voice changed. "I want to help you."
Anakin sighed. This was not going to be easy. "What do you want to know?" As Anakin said this he launched a force mind probe into the woman, trying to identify her real status. However, much to his surprise he hit a literal metal barrier that stopped his from even approaching the woman's mind. This meant she had been trained, and had been trained well.
The woman however seemed oblivious to the mental probe or was doing well to hide it.
"Let's start off with the basics, what is your name?" Anakin searched through the force at her question, she seemed to genuinely not know or perhaps she could hide that as well? Anakin decided to lie.
"Owen Naberrie." Anakin knew that Owen was already here so he could not use his real name lest he be found out so he added in his wife's maiden name. The woman was not immediately responsive.
"How long have you been here?" the woman continued, her emotions hidden by her very strange and unfamiliar accent.
"Funny you should ask," Anakin responded, only got here about six hours ago, give or take." This time the woman seemed really surprised and leapt back slightly as that was the answer she had not expected.
"I am familiar with your arts, I served alongside many of your fellow Jedi when I was still alive," the woman replied. Anakin gave a wry smile.
"Who said I was a Jedi?" Anakin vaguely replied. When the woman made no response Anakin decided to take the initiative. "Now its time for me to ask you something. When did you die?" Yet again the woman was silent for a few moments.
"Around two decades ago," the woman replied vaguely. Anakin continued however with his point.
"That was around the time of the Jedi purges, so perhaps you may or may not know that the Jedi are now pretty much extinct, well they are about to rise again, but you won't know that," Anakin replied. There was an awkward silence between them as both of them stopped talking.
"So tell me then Owen, why you murdered those slavers?" the woman asked. Anakin looked away from the woman and looked at the floor.
"I'm not proud of what I did; it reminds me of a past time. I grew up as a slave, it was horrible and every single time I see slavery I naturally become somewhat angry. I tried to control it by arguing with them rather than resort to violence but he would not listen and he drew the blaster first, so I had to react," Anakin said, sighing deeply after speaking, regretting that he had taken such extreme measures.
"Have you always had an agenda for violence and bursts of anger?" the woman continued to interrogate. Anakin looked at the shadow closely, eyeing what he could see.
"Do you really want to know?" Anakin replied. There was another moment of silence between them and the tension between them also grew.
"Please tell me, perhaps it could help in the future?" the woman replied, her voice more gentle but still deprived of emotion due to the accent. Anakin gave a small chuckle.
"Fine, if you insist, but you won't like what you are going to hear." The woman nodded and waiting for Anakin to continue. "What do you know, milady, of Darth Vader?" The woman visibly shook.
"I've heard stories of many who come into the city, they talk of a draconian leader, fearless they say and capable of crushing a mans head with his hand. Apparently he is over 2 meters tall and wears full black armor and it is said he cannot be killed. I doubt it's true, but that's what I've heard." Anakin laughed.
"They are not well off, but let me assure you, Darth Vader can indeed be killed." Anakin let the woman figure it out for herself. The woman however surprisingly did not react.
"Darth Vader rose to prominence just after my death, or so it seems, he has to be atleast forty now, you are no older than twenty five." It was more of a statement than of a question.
Anakin chuckled again. "Yeah I've thought about that myself but it seems I've been given a second chance at life by the force. To redeem myself more than anything if you know what I mean. Great way to start it, mass murder, seems like I am carrying on my past life's legacy," Anakin said bitterly, venom striking through his lips.
"Did you like what you became?" the woman enquired. The conversation had steered off topic now but Anakin didn't care. He finally had someone to talk to, a stranger who he suddenly trusted for seemingly no reason, to confide in.
"I killed for my master. I mass murdered, I tortured. To answer you earlier question, I became a sith. An evil Jedi if it is put into context. I did so many horrible things. Things I regret, things which I would suffer for fifty lives just so I could take back, I even…I…," Anakin then stopped, unable to continue speaking.
The woman seemed curious and was pressing Anakin. "What did you do?" Anakin looked down to the floor and much to the surprise of the woman he began to sob.
"I…killed her…my angel…the best part of me…," he sniffled. The woman again for some reason did not react. Anakin looked up again to see the woman studying him.
"Who did you kill?" Anakin looked down again, deep in thought.
"My wife. Angel was the nickname I gave to her." The woman slowly began to nod at Anakin.
"Did you love her?" Anakin looked at the woman curiously. Such a personal question, what was she trying to gain. Was she intent of helping him relieve his sins?
"More than anything in the world, I do anything just to see her again. She completes me; I would even give up the force entirely to be with her. You might ask why I killed her if I loved her. I'll tell you the truth then. I became mad with power. I saw her bring somebody to kill me, or that's what I thought. I became so angry I choked her. When I realized my mistake it was too late. I would do anything, even burn for a millennia just to change things on that day. She probably didn't betray me. No, she wouldn't. Looking back now, free from anger and hatred, I know she wouldn't. Knowing Obi-Wan he probably sneaked on without her knowing." He gave a very weak smile amidst the sobs.
The woman was silent and Anakin could tell she was digesting all the information he was giving her. Finally she spoke again and the next question shocked Anakin.
"Describe her to me," she asked. Her voice much more emotional than before with less traces of the accent in her voice than before.
"Why," Anakin instinctively replied.
"I would like to know about her; perhaps I could help you find her? She can help you Owen, relieve all the anger." Anakin gave a bitter laugh and looked back at the woman.
"She probably hates me now, she has the right to. She won't want to see me ever again; she's probably got somebody else to care for her now, something I had the stupid inability to do. She will never forgive me, but I can understand," Anakin ranted pessimistically.
The woman however seemed more optimistic. "Perhaps with time she can forgive you? Have you found out where she currently resides here?" Anakin nodded.
"Its funny, I was just going to go to her apartment and beg for forgiveness before I came across the slavers. I'm sorry for causing the trouble but seeing slavery really stirs me up."
The woman nodded in agreement. "So, tell me, what is your wife like?" Anakin smiled at her before entering in deep thought in a seemingly dream like trance.
"She's quite small, petit actually but she's incredibly strong and beautiful," Anakin spoke, in a vague and slightly dreamy voice. "I remember the scent of her hair as if I smelt it merely hours ago, its long chestnut brown with small stunning curls. Her eyes…I remember all those years ago I could simply loose myself in them, those large brown orbs and her lips, soft tender and light red." Anakin looked down to the floor and tears began to flow openly from his eyes now.
"How could I done such a thing. She was innocent. She never betrayed me! What was I thinking! She was the only one who ever really cared and look what I did!" he cried, venting his own self inflicted anger. He looked up again to surprisingly see the woman also looking at the floor. He decided now to take the initiative.
"Well I apologize milady in advance," Anakin said, wiping his eyes. "I have to go now." The woman immediately looked up and although Anakin could not read her face as it was hooded he could tell that she was surprised.
"Don't worry, I wont harm the officers; I'll put them to sleep. But like you said, I need to find my wife. I was a coward and I'm not going to be one anymore. I have things to do and unfortunately I can't afford to stay here. Perhaps when I have completed everything I can come back and condone for my crimes but again, I'm sorry."
"Don't go," the woman quietly said, it was muffled but was accent free and Anakin swore he recognized that voice somewhere before.
"I'm sorry milady, but I have to." The woman cried out again and this time was more of a plead than a request. It sounded desperate.
"Please Anakin, don't go, and stay. Let me do one thing to persuade you to stay?" Anakin flinched. What had she just said?
"What did you say? What did you call me? Who are you?" Anakin trembled. How could she possibly know who he was? He wanted answers.
The woman was still and silent for a few moments. Finally she moved. She put both her hands on opposite sides of the hood. She slowly bought them down. The sight that came to Anakin's view made his mouth gape open in shock. The woman's tear stained cheek and familiar face made Anakin feel light headed.
"Will you stay now Ani?"
END OF CHAPTER
Tell me watcha think :P
