The Spire truly was as menacing as the stories had made it out to be. Cold and inflexible, it was a massive fortress set into a mountainside overlooking a landscape of jagged barren rock formations as far as the eye could see, each one rising like a death spike for anyone who dared to attempt an escape...and then slipped to their doom. The prison was literally hewn from the very mountain itself. Three distinct towers jutted up into the inky blackness of the night sky, a soft, eerie glow illuminating the few barred windows that the prison did have, all belonging to the Imperials' sector offices, no doubt. Padme didn't let the prison's stark striking appearance bother her in the slightest. She told herself that she had faced worse odds and escaped.

She wasn't exactly sure how true that was, but she hoped, by the Force, she wasn't about to find out otherwise.

What unnerved her, however, was how easily they came in. Even with cloaking shields, she felt as if the skies around the towers should have been more guarded than what they'd encountered. The people in this prison were all highly prized by the Empire. No way was Sidious about to let anyone escape from here. Of course, if she were to let them all escape, it would certainly be a major blow to the Empire. She smirked. That idea appealed to her a lot. Still, there were also people inside these walls, she knew, who were legitimately very bad creatures, who should never leave that prison. But, it would take too long to figure out who was who and decide who should be released, and who shouldn't, and besides, she didn't feel comfortable playing a god. Not to mention the fact her mission was to help Obi-Wan find and extract Master Unduli. She didn't have the time or luxury to deviate from that mission.

No matter how much she might be tempted to.

That's what she told herself, however, as she stealthily followed Obi-Wan down uncomfortably empty, sterile hallways. Kriff, this is too damn easy! It had been almost totally unchallenging to get inside the complex. Too easy for Rex and his men to hold the door. Though she could hear muted screams in the distance reverberating through the facility, the hallways and cells they passed were empty and silent, like metal tombs. "Something isn't right here." Padme hissed, her soft voice echoing off the walls. And, was it just her, or were some of these cell doors coated with some type of weird fluorescent dust?

"I know." Obi-Wan's voice was on edge when they stopped to peer around the next corner to check for guards. Like all the other hallways they had traveled, it, too, was empty. No Stormtroopers on guard. No foot patrols. He held up a hand then closed his fist, signaling to be quiet and stop, just as Padme opened her mouth. "And, for the record, yes, I know it's a trap. I've been on enough rescue missions to know when I'm walking into a trap but…" He broke off, a frown creasing his lips, worry flooding his eyes.

"I know, I know. If there's a chance to rescue Luminara," Padme whispered, "You need to take it." She understood. Obi-Wan may not have had a traditional family like she'd had, but the Order had been his family from infancy. It had been his sole way of life. It was all he'd ever known. Now, with most of them gone thanks to the Empire's purges, he had to feel lonely. Given that it was his former padawan who had destroyed that Order in the first place, it had to be worse for Obi-Wan. She could at least feel for him in that sense, as that very same padawan is the one who had betrayed and destroyed her family as well.

So, she followed him, senses alert, one hand tightened on the hilt of her lightsaber, the other on her blaster on her thigh, her heart thudding almost painfully in her chest. Every instinct was screaming at her to run and get the hell outta there. She fought her instincts to run, though. Instead, she decided to somehow take control of the situation, to turn the tables on their hunters. And, yes, they were being hunted. Of that, she had no doubt. Still, she couldn't just leave Obi-Wan here, not when he'd followed after her against his better judgement on multiple occasions. He'd had her back. It was her turn to have his. "We're almost there," He whispered as they turned another corner, and he paused so suddenly she almost smacked into his back.

"She's in there."

There was only one hallway before them. A dead end. How apropos, she thought wryly. The single cell lay at the far end, alone….and once again, unguarded. How convenient. If they headed into that hallway and were attacked from behind, they would be trapped. It was so blatantly obvious, the idea of walking into it made her skin crawl. She wanted to insist that they turn around and leave - now - while Rex and his men were still holding the blast doors open for them, but she didn't. Instead, it was Obi-Wan who glanced at her over his shoulder. "Stay here, and watch for the attack."

"Stay? Did you say stay?" She echoed with a frown, but she was already positioning herself to guard the hallway. "You can't just waltz in there by yourself, y'know. That's suicide, Obi-Wan."

"It's already a dead end, Nightblade. And, frankly," Obi-Wan replied dryly with another glance over his shoulder at her, "It won't matter if you're with me or not." Silently cursing, she didn't argue. She knew he was right—even with all the skills she'd honed to near perfection, Obi-Wan was still a formidable Force user and a very proficient and highly trained Jedi Master. Her assistance might help him somewhat, but if the circumstances were really that dire, they would only prolong the inevitable by minutes. And, they both knew it.

"May the Force be with you." She said instead, igniting her lightsaber and turning around to watch the hallway. "Hurry up, would ya. This place gives me the creeps."

"You have no idea," Obi-Wan muttered, and she listened to him hurry forward down the hallway. Every muscle in her body was taut, ready to spring into action—she wanted to watch him, to make sure that he got Master Unduli out, but she also wasn't about to let anyone sneak up on them either. So, she waited, listening intently to the faint snap-hiss as Obi-Wan ignited his own lightsaber and jammed it into something—the locking mechanism, perhaps.

The comm in her ear pinged suddenly, and she swiftly answered it, "I read you, Exit Pass. Go ahead."

"Nightblade," Rex's voice was low and rough. "Do you have the package yet?"

"Negative." Padme responded, keeping her voice low as well, despite the fact that there literally was no one else but Obi-Wan to hear her. "We almost have it though."

"Hurry," Rex said, and Padme heard the sound of blast doors swishing open behind her, "It won't be long before—Ah, shit!" Suddenly, the sound of blaster fire erupted into her ear, before it cut off just as quickly. Along with their communications, apparently.

Kriff!

"Exit Pass? Do you copy, over?" Padme hissed, anxiety coiling rapidly in her gut, "Rex?! Do you read me?!" There was no reply. Dammit to the nine Corellian hells! Cursing in Huttese, she whirled towards the now open cell door. There was no Obi-Wan. "Master Jedi!" She yelled, refraining from using Obi-Wan's name. "We're about to have compa…"

The cell door suddenly slammed shut.

It was almost too easy. Honestly, Boba Fett didn't know why Vader was so worried about this plan failing. As far as Fett was concerned, anyone who broke into a maximum security prison and met no resistance was either stupid, insane, or way too cocky for their own good. Given that his prey was the wife of Darth Vader, he had no doubt that she was cocky, rather than stupid. He couldn't see the Dark Lord falling for any female who wasn't at least his equal in cunning—although, frankly, he still couldn't imagine the Dark Lord falling for any woman at all - let alone marrying one. He shuddered. A Sith Lord seducing a woman? No. That was one image he definitely didn't want in his head.

As much as Lord Vader had wanted to be in the prison himself, waiting for his wife, he hadn't done so. He'd said, if Fett recalled correctly, that the Jedi with her would sense his Force presence immediately and would have abandoned the mission. Still, even without the Dark Lord physically there, he could still practically feel him hovering over his shoulder, his blank, black stare zeroing in on his back. And, he felt that invisible bullseye growing bigger by the second. He suppressed a shiver, and watched the Holofeed as the two hooded figures made their way through the silent empty hallways, the tall one in a dark brown Jedi robe, and the other smaller one in figure-hugging black leather that covered her from head to toe, a mask securely in place over the lower half of her face.

Fett had to admit, her body was certainly enticing, the clinging material of the suit she was wearing leaving little to his imagination. Feeling the first faint embers of desire starting to stir within himself at her image, he quickly clamped down on those feelings. Focus, Fett. You can't get the hots for Vader's wife. If he senses it, you're dead meat.

Shaking his head to clear it, his gaze narrowed through his own helmet lens on the woman in the Holofeed. What would the woman who had entranced the Dark Lord look like? He wouldn't find out, he knew—at least not yet. Darth Vader was very specific about keeping her identity secret. Maybe someday he would see the face of the woman who held the heart - or, whatever passed for a heart - of the most dangerous man in the Galaxy.

He watched closely as the rebel pair finally approached the hallway containing the bait. Watching them debate (which told him they obviously knew this was a trap), he depressed the comm in the cuff of his arm bracer. "They've just entered the trap. Waiting to spring it."

"Good. Proceed as planned. Be mindful of any...surprises, Fett. They are both masters of improvisation in difficult situations, " Vader's voice boomed over the comm. He wasn't about to question the Sith. Fett was sure he knew what he was talking about. Flicking his comm off, he didn't bother acknowledging Vader's comments and simply crossed his arms and continued to watch the events unfold on the floor directly above him. The Jedi paused, said something to Vader's woman, then proceeded forward quickly toward the dead Jedi's cell. She didn't move forward. She stayed back. Obviously to guard his flank.

The Jedi, as Vader had predicted, melted through the door's control panel with his lightsaber. Watching as the cell door flew open and the Jedi advanced into the room, Fett leaned forward and pressed a button on the panel in the main control room for this sector of the prison. On the Holoscreen, he watched impassively as the cell door slammed shut, and she whirled round. Smirking, he observed the scene as she glanced back behind her where Stormtroopers were now suddenly advancing on her, blocking her exit. She moved from her flanking position and back stepped toward the hallway her companion had just disappeared from. Keeping her blue lightsaber in front of her, she kept her eyes trained on the advancing troopers, and Fett, muttered, "Come on...just a few more steps...That's it...Just a little more…"

She stepped back twice more, now only a few feet from the dead Jedi's cell door, and Fett grinned under his helmet. He pressed a different button on the console before him, and suddenly, a hidden floor panel opened up beneath her, and she appeared to let out a surprised yell before she plunged out of sight, the panel slamming shut as she disappeared from view.

"Gotcha, Lady Vader."

Before she could finish yelling at Obi-Wan, the cell door slammed shut. Whirling, she heard the sound of marching feet quickly advancing on her position. Kriffing hells! Stormtroopers! I knew this was a trap, dammit! She glanced back the way they'd come and found a guard patrol quickly advancing on her position. Padme considered her options and realized she didn't have many. Great...just great. She slowly backed up toward Unduli's cell door, keeping her lightsaber in front of her, her eyes trained on the advancing squadron of troopers as they rounded the corner and came into view. She was cornered, and she knew it, but with any luck, if she could reach the cell door, she could hopefully get inside and then she and Obi-Wan could hopefully figure a way out of this friggin' mess.

Unfortunately, her luck ran out.

It was as she backed up another two steps that, without warning, the floor literally opened up beneath her and sent her plunging down a pitch black open shaft. She gasped and let out a surprised yelp as she felt the floor slid out from underneath her. Thank the Force that, in that split second of momentary suspension before she plummeted, she had the good sense to snap off her lightsaber, thus avoiding severing any of her body parts as she fell. Feeling the rush of air around her as she dropped feet first down the shaft, her descent came to an abrupt halt when another trap door slid open below her, illuminating the blackened shaft with an infusion of light from below. Dropping through the opening, she landed in a heap on the floor of...yet another hallway, one just like she'd been in outside Unduli's cell.

"Uhh," she grunted as she stood up and surveyed her new surroundings. She thankfully didn't appear to be injured, despite the sharp landing on her feet. So, either that floor panel was pressure plated (unlikely, since Obi-Wan had stepped on it before her), or they were being watched and someone had deliberately opened that floor panel (likeliest scenario, since here she stood). Vader. It had to be him! Suddenly, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. Vader was here...somewhere...she was sure of it. How he could be here without Obi-Wan having sensed it was beyond her...but couple her fall through the floor with the apparent ease of their arrival (even with cloaking shields), their unhindered advance into the inner depths of the Spire down nothing but unguarded hallways, the subsequent manner in which she and Obi-Wan had now been separated, led her to conclude that this entire mission had been nothing but a setup from the get-go...aimed at one specific target.

Her.

She should've known. Now that he knew she was alive, Vader was after her. Unduli and Obi-Wan were the bait. The Rebellion didn't say how they came into this intel on Unduli, but obviously, whatever their source, it was sham intel, fed to them by Vader himself. And, they'd all fallen for it, dammit! Padme suddenly doubted Unduli was even here to begin with. It was all an elaborate trap laid specifically for her. Bagging Obi-Wan and Rex and his team were just added bonuses. No, Vader wanted her back and was apparently determined to succeed, but her estranged husband was in for a rather rude awakening, because she had absolutely no intention of being his wife again...no matter how much she missed who he'd once been. She loved Anakin. Not Vader. Never Vader. And, he wouldn't like -or accept - that one bit.

Which meant...she was going to have to fight tooth and nail to get out of here.

If Threepio were here, he'd undoubtedly start spitting out the odds against her succeeding. Smirking at the thought, she squared her shoulders and locked her jaw. She would get out of here. Alive and in one piece (hopefully). But, first...she had to find Obi-Wan. Glancing around, she noted that this hallway was shorter and was 'T' shaped on one end, as it opened onto another crossing hallway. No doors on either side, she noted as she cautiously began walking forward toward the other hallway. There was one door in front of her, at the juncture ahead. As she approached the intersecting halls, that door suddenly opened, revealing a glimpse into a semi-darkened room, the muted blue-green glow from Holoscreens visible on the floor.

Her senses all screaming, "Trap! Trap!," she realized that this was obviously one of the Imperial control rooms...which meant it likely had a control console within (which meant holovid monitors she could try and use to track down Obi-Wan)...and, even better, being on an outside wall, it probably had one of those barred windows they'd noticed on their approach vector. Hmm...if she played her sabacc cards right, she could 1) Take out a few Imperials here, 2) Find Obi-Wan and maybe Unduli, and 3) Escape out the window. Not exactly a piece of cake (or the perfect plan...after all, cakes can fall apart), but certainly worth a shot, trap or not.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to steady her nerves like Yoda had taught her as she approached the door. Flattening herself against the wall, she peered round the corner and looked left, then right, then back behind her, before darting forward and into the door. Perfect! It was one of the control rooms...with the exit window just as she'd thought! Jackpot! Only thing was...there were no Imperials in the rather large control room. No one monitoring the Holofeeds. No one monitoring transmissions. No one monitoring the control status of the various instrument panels. Ok. That wasn't right. Yep, a trap. It figures.

"I've been expecting you."

The unexpected mechanicalized voice from behind her made her gasp and jolt with surprise. She whirled on the balls of her feet, whipping out her lightsaber and igniting it to face...Not Vader, as she had anticipated (the voice wasn't the same as Vader's she now realized) but a much shorter fellow dressed in Mandalorian armor with very distinctive markings on them. She'd heard of this guy before. Never met him, but she knew of him...and surprisingly, he was working for Vader. Intriguing. Imperials tended to avoid this guy's type for the most part, but then, Vader had always been one to bend (or break, as it were) the rules as he saw fit. She smirked under her own mask. "Well, well, well...The notorious Boba Fett. We meet at last."

She tilted her head slightly in greeting. She respected this man's skills and even his apparent lack of character (which made him all the more dangerous, she knew). Out of all the bounty hunters in the galaxy she knew of, this one's reputation far exceeded them all. He was ruthless, thorough, and never backed down from any challenge, which was why the Hutts favored him so much. If he'd had any sense of morality or principles - other than his own - she would likely have enjoyed working with him for the Rebellion. But, his allegiance was tied to one thing only ...credits, lots and lots of credits...and was totally lacking in any moral compass. And, working for Vader meant one thing. He was under orders to bring her to the Dark Lord.

Not happening.

Fett stepped forward. He could see the steely determination in her dark brown eyes, and he realized she was not going to comply and come quietly. Under very strict orders from her estranged Sith Lord husband to not harm so much as one hair on her head, he knew if she resisted (which she would, no doubt), the likelihood of injury increased exponentially. After all, he'd seen the Holofootage of the carnage she'd single-handedly wrecked before. In fact, he'd even found out who some of the assassins were that trained her. So, he had an inkling of what she was capable of...especially with that lightsaber in her hand. She'd fought Vader himself, apparently, saber to saber, and had held her own. So, she couldn't be taken lightly.

Of course, his job now was simply one of containment. As soon as she'd plunged through the trapdoor in the floor, he'd comm'd Vader, who had already landed his shuttle and was making his way quickly to this exact location. Vader would be the one to capture his wife. Fett just had to stall her long enough to prevent her escape from this office. Without getting himself killed, of course.

Fett inclined his head in acknowledgement of her greeting. "Lady Vader."

"DON'T YOU DARE CALL ME THAT!"

Both surprised...and somehow not, at the same time...at her reaction, he calmly replied, "That is your title, isn't it? You are legally married to Lord Vader, are you not?"

He listened to her gasping angry inhalations and sensed he'd obviously struck a nerve. "No. I am not married to that evil monster."

Her declaration was spoken with such venom, such force, he almost believed her. Maybe it's just wishful thinking on her part, he surmised. After all, their ideals were obviously polar opposites, he being a Sith, and she working for the Rebellion as an assassin. "I'm afraid I don't know what to call you then, Madam." He hoped he could keep her talking. The update given in his helmet's internal earpiece from Vader was five minutes and counting. Yeah, well...

Five minutes with this woman could prove fatal.

Advancing a few more steps forward, he was careful to keep a grip on his EE3-carbine rifle. He also had a Mandalorian heavy blaster holstered on his left hip. Both weapons were unlocked and set to stun. He'd rather not have to use them and would prefer to let husband and wife slug it out. That was by far the safer option...for him anyway. While Vader was busy trying to subdue his wife, Fett could then go take care of the Jedi who should be stuck at the moment in lockdown in Unduli's cell.

Unfortunately, she took that moment to launch herself at him in a surprise attack move, swinging her lightsaber in an arc and bringing it down at him so swiftly he barely had time to block the blow with his rifle...and he was shocked at just how strong she was. Brown eyes glowered menacingly at his helmet. "My name is not important, Fett." That was all she said before she swung out with her left leg and swept his feet literally out from under him, dropping him to the ground with a thud. He rolled right just in time as her saber impacted against the floor where his head had just been, melting the durasteel and sending sparks flying. Continuing to roll across the floor as she rained blow after blow at him, he blocked each one or rolled to avoid the jarring impact of each strike on the floor, finally finding room to push himself up and jump back to his feet. He stretched out with his right arm and depressed a button on the underside of his wrist arm bracer with his left hand, and instantly, a cord shot out and wrapped around her arms and upper chest several times. There, that should hold her.

Wrong move.

Instantly, she grabbed the hilt of her lightsaber in both hands and tilted it carefully backward and Snap!, the cord severed in half. Jumping back a foot, she jerked the loosened cord over her head and reached into a pocket on her belt, grabbed what looked like a small black pellet...and before he could stop her, she threw it at the floor between them. Instantly, thick grayish smoke filled the room. His helmet filtered out the pungent smell, but it didn't allow him to see through it. He heard the sounds of her scrambling across the floor. At the same time, he heard the distinct sound of mechanical breathing and the pounding tread of heavy footsteps outside in the hallway heralding the approach of the woman's husband...and his employer.

Vader had arrived.

Just as the Sith Lord walked through the door of the room, the sound of blaster fire, shattering glass, the loud roar of whooshing wind, and then two rapid slashes of a lightsaber through the cast iron bars over the window was heard. Sizing up the situation in one glance, Vader advanced quickly across the room…But, not fast enough. As Fett moved to join Vader, they both watched as Vader's wife (Fett still didn't know her name) hauled herself onto the ledge and kicked the bars free. At that moment, Vader reached out with his right hand as if to grab her and stop her.

Her comm sounded suddenly, a male voice crying out, "Jump, Nightblade! Now!"

Without glancing back at them, she leapt from the ledge. Vader's outstretched hand swiped through empty space where she'd just been, and he stepped to the window, staring out into the darkness of night. Fett stood at his side and stared down the side of the tower. Below them they spotted a modified Delta-Class JV-7 assault vehicle, and Vader's wife had just landed on the rear side of the craft, where an open hatch with a hooded figure...Blast it! That Jedi escaped, too!...waited to catch her and haul her inside. Already the rear engines were firing to begin accelerating, as she crawled the few feet to grasp the Jedi's outstretched hands. Grabbing the woman around the waist, he steadied her as they both looked back up for a moment to where Vader and Fett stood silently. Then, their pedestal descended and the hatch closed, sealing them off from view. Their ship's engines revved up, and the ship turned and steadily climbed toward the atmosphere, preparing to make the jump to hyperspace.

Vader slammed his fist down on the window ledge, but remained silent. Fett wisely said nothing. As they watched the ship launch into hyperspace and disappear entirely from view, he knew Vader had already ordered that any unauthorized vehicle attempting to depart the airspace be allowed to do so without being attacked. But, that didn't mean they weren't being tracked. Vader was nothing if not thorough. Aware that his wife's escape was at least a possibility, the Sith had prepared for just such an event, arranging for small flying microdroids to implant tiny tracking devices of his own design, on their ship. Vader was tenacious in his resolve to capture his wife alive and unharmed and, being the brilliant strategist that he was, had prepared for every contingency he could think of. The Dark Lord continued to stare off into space in the direction that they had flown. Fett braved a comment.

"At least we now know her codename, Lord Vader. They call her Nightblade."

For a moment, Fett was concerned he was about to breathe his last, but Vader simply turned to stare at him. The Sith's only comment, when he spoke, was dry...

"And, I told you they were masters of improvisation, Fett."

Fett nodded his head, "Yes, Sir." Vader turned and exited the room, his black cloak billowing out behind him. Fett watched the Dark Lord exit the room before turning to glance back out the window. Yes, they certainly had proven that. Now, they would have to wait and see what data the tracking device provided. Wherever it took Nightblade and her Jedi companion, Fett was sure Vader would not be far behind. They were getting closer. Today had also proven that. Nightblade and the Jedi were very good...but not infallible. Sooner or later, they'd trip up.

And, Vader...and Fett...would be there waiting for them when they did.

I know, I know. It's been a long time since I've updated. I got sick, got a promotion, then got super busy at work because of it. Then, to top it off, I got totally stuck while writing this chapter. My Beta saved the day though and seriously helped in writing this chapter. So hopefully I don't get as stuck in the future!

Review!

Love,

Sarah