Chapter 4: A Deal With the Devil
Padme stalked out of Chancellor Palpatine's office, fuming. She was walking so quickly that her bodyguard Captain Typho was having difficulty keeping up with her.
"That man frustrates me! He seems to want to take no part in ending this war diplomatically! It's all violence and fighting! It's as if it satisfies him! And he continues to speed up the production of more clones on Kamino, as if he does not even plan on considering ending it. We will lose everything!" Padme was breathing heavily, fists tightened, her arms swinging madly as she walked towards the Senate Apartment Complex.
"M'lady, please. Reason with him. Palpatine is doing what he can to make sure this Republic stays intact. I have seen nothing but loyalty from him, if I may say so myself," Captain Typho reasoned, trying to calm Padme down.
"His eyes have turned cold, Captain! He is not the same Palpatine I knew when I was Queen. He has changed. I cannot trust him, or the way he handles this Republic. I felt this way towards Chancellor Valorum, and now I am beginning to feel this way towards Chancellor Palpatine," Padme confessed. Her eyes were glistening with hurt, feeling betrayed by Palpatine.
The two then continued to walk towards her apartment in silence.
"In time, M'lady, things will settle down, and all will be right in the world," Typho comforted, both stopping once they reached the entrance of her apartment.
"The only way that will happen, is when this war ends. Thank you Captain, now if you will excuse me, I have matters to attend to." Padme put her hand on her friend's arm, smiled sadly, and entered her apartment.
Padme proceeded to rest for a moment, and sat on the couch in silence. All she could hear was the trickling of the fountain on her balcony, and the sound of ships flying by in the distance.
Oh Ani, everything is hopeless! I miss you, I need you. I miss the feeling of your arms around me and your words of comfort. That's when I felt safe. I need you to come home. A tear trickled down Padme's flawless face, and she pulled off of her neck the necklace that Anakin had made for her eleven years ago. She remembers that day like it was yesterday. She was fourteen and the Queen of Naboo, and he was a little nine year old boy, newly freed from slavery and anticipating becoming a Jedi.
Padme smiled at Anakin's first words to her.
"Are you an angel...I've heard the deep space pilots talk about them…They're the most beautiful creatures in the universe," he had said, not tall enough for his feet to reach halfway down the counter while sitting on it.
Padme's mind drifted, and she eventually fell asleep on the couch. She then had a nightmare. Padme was in the field on Naboo that she and Anakin had spent much of their time while in hiding. The field then caught on fire, surrounding her. A path cleared from the fire, and at the end of the path lay a dead Anakin, and Palpatine standing over him.
"NO!" Padme screamed, waking up, her face full of sweat. Her chest heaved as she tried to compose herself. It was now dark out.
"Hello Senator," said a deep voice from the darkness of the apartment.
Padme scrambled from the couch, pulling her blaster from a compartment on a side-table. Padme was an excellent marksman, something that she had been trained for when she was Queen.
"Who are you?" Padme yelled, her hands trembling so much that she could not even aim the blaster.
"You don't remember me? What a shame," Count Dooku smirked as he came out from the shadows.
"Count Dooku! What do you want?" Padme asked, her eyes narrowed in suspicion, backing away with caution.
"I want to negotiate with you Senator. In a civilized manner. There is no need for barbaric machinery," Dooku responded, using the Force to pull Padme's blaster out of her hands.
Padme gasped as the silver blaster slipped out of her fingers. She then looked into Count Dooku's dark, emotionless eyes.
"What exactly do you wish to negotiate?" Padme questioned.
"How far would you go to end this war?" Dooku asked, looking at Padme knowingly.
Padme then straightened her back, and looked at Dooku curiously, intrigued by the question.
"What do you mean?" she asked tersely.
"Are you willing to sacrifice your life to end this war? You are a threat to the Trade Federation, as you know. The Seperatists want you dead. If you follow my instructions and leave with me, the Seperatists will have their way with you, and perhaps be willing to compromise with the Republic," Dooku lied. Yes, the Trade Federation despised Padme after she defeated them during her reign as Queen, but they were not willing to end the war.
Padme's judgment was clouded because of her desperation to end the war, and did not think through what Dooku just told her. She rarely made a mistake like that, but her strong desire for peace caused her to believe Dooku.
Padme was a courageous individual, and did not fear sacrificing her life for something she believed in.
"What must I do?" Padme asked, clutching Anakin's necklace, knowing that she would never see him again.
"Come aboard my ship quietly. Take no belongings. Just yourself," Dooku instructed. He then led her to his ship under the night sky, as dark as his soul.
Padme slowly walked up the gangway of the ship with her head down. I'm sorry Anakin. I'm sorry for not saying goodbye.
Little did she know that as she was walking into the ship, Dooku left a tracking device on the couch, knowing that Skywalker would soon follow.
