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"Once more the Sith will rule the galaxy, and we shall have peace."
Chapter X
Dark Acolyte Barriss Offee wandered her way back through an old decommissioned factory in "The Works". The place had become her meeting place with Darth Sidious. As she walked through the dark and forbidding factory she felt a shudder run up her spine and heard what she thought was a low and groaning voice, it felt as if she were in a haunted house. She picked up her pace and walked faster. "Barriss..." A voice whispered. She stopped dead in her tracks, her hands reaching for her lightsaber.
"Who's there?!" She said in a frightened voice.
"Barrrisssss... The Betrayer!" The voice called out again, this time louder.
Barriss felt a gush of wind which blew back her hood. The fallen Jedi gasped and activated her lightsaber.
"Show yourself!" Barriss growled, her hands gripping her lightsaber tight.
"He will destroy you!" The low voice declared.
"Who!?" Barriss demanded.
Silence. Not a whisper. Barriss looked around alertly at her surroundings as the factory then became deathly silent. There were no signs of life.
When Barriss felt it was safe she sheathed her lightsaber and clipped it back onto her belt. She ran her fingers over her belt buckle; it once bore a decorative heart symbol that stood for love. When she was released from prison and given back her personal belongings she used her new lightsaber to cross it out. Love was the weakness of the Jedi, am emotion not suited for a hopeful Sith apprentice. As she ran her fingers over her defaced belt buckle Barriss' thoughts briefly dwelled on her former best friend, fellow Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano. She could faintly hear Ahsoka's voice in the back of her mind. "What have you become Barriss?" Barriss could feel it; the pull back to the light. She struggled with her inner emotions about what she had just done. She had murdered in cold blood Jedi healer Talanta Muburi; a much beloved individual at the Jedi Temple. When Barriss saw her in the Jedi Council chambers she felt great resentment, perhaps because Talanta's good-hearted and cheerful nature represented the opposite of everything Barriss herself had become, and when she killed Talanta it served as a symbolic gesture of betraying and murdering what good was left inside of her. Affirming her new commitment to the dark path, Barriss Offee had made her decision, and there was no going back.
Barriss approached a clearing in the factory and found her master, Darth Sidious waiting for her. She got down on one knee and bowed in obedience before him.
"Rise my Dark Acolyte," he said while extending a hand.
Barriss rose and reached into a pouch on her belt and pulled out the holo recording she had stolen. "My master, please accept this as a token of my obedience. Furthermore, I killed an old Jedi friend at the temple. I wanted to make a statement."
Sidious smiled with approval as he took the holo recording. "Excellent, you have done well my new acolyte. I can feel the hate coursing through you. It gives you focus, makes you stronger. You have passed your first great test. Are you ready to take the next step on your journey?"
Barriss nodded. "Yes, my Master."
Sidious then extended his hand once more and gestured for her to kneel. "Then, kneel."
Barriss obeyed and kneeled before her master and bowed her head.
"From this moment on, you shall be known as... Nadara, Dark Lady of the Sith."
She closed her eyes. Barriss Offee had now become Nadara, adherent to the Sith teachings of the Dark Side of the Force and apprentice to Darth Sidious.
"Thank you, my Master," Nadara said looking up at Sidious.
"Rise."
Nadara, Dark Lady of the Sith rose and stood before her now grinning master.
His smile was contained and differential, and his voice carefully modulated as he spoke. "And now my young apprentice, I feel you are ready to learn the ultimate truth."
Nadara was studying her master closely now. "The truth about what?" She asked curiously.
"About the war," Sidious said as he pulled back on his hood revealing his identity as Sheev Palpatine, Supreme Chancellor of the Galactic Republic.
Nadara was completely taken aback, she gasped and brought a hand to her mouth in surprise. In no way was she expecting Darth Sidious being the Republic Chancellor.
"Yes, Chancellor Palpatine is my alter ego. And before you think about anything my apprentice, know that we both share the same ultimate goal; bringing law and order to the galaxy and putting an end to government corruption. I am bringing to fruition the Grand Plan the Sith set in motion millennia ago. As both Sith Lord Darth Sidious, and Sheev Palpatine of Naboo I orchestrated the Clone Wars. Yes, I can see the surprise and shock on your face, but the end of the war is upon us. When it is all finished the Jedi Order will be no more and the Republic will be re-organized into a new Empire. An Empire ruled by me, and his apprentice by his side. In exchange for your loyalty, I can give you power... Unlimited power," the Dark Lord explained to her, placing great emphasis on the word 'power'.
"Do I have your complete loyalty?" Sidious asked his newly anointed Sith apprentice.
"Yes, yes, my Master, you have it," Nadara pledged. She could not refuse him, she could feel his powerful aura all around her, and it both frightened and fascinated her. She now wanted the same power, her initial taste of the power of the Dark Side felt almost like a narcotic to her. She convinced herself in her mind over and over again that this was the only way, that the system was too rotten and needed to be torn down, and in order to achieve this she needed the power. That's what she told herself.
Sidious then extended his hands towards her. "Good," he said shortly before unleashing a torrent of Force lighting into Nadara, knocking her backwards and onto the ground. Nadara groaning in pain as she lay upon the dirty factory floor.
"And should you ever think about betraying me. Remember that pain, because your punishment will be to suffer a pain 10 times greater than what I just inflicted before I kill you slowly!" Sidious declared, making sure his new apprentice new her place in the grand scheme of things.
Nadara began to stand up, gripping a nearby pipe for support. "No, master, I would never betray you," she responded to her master out of fear instead of respect.
"Splendid, now you are learning the ways of the Sith, Nadara. And now I have a new task for you. Proceed to landing strip 7A at the Republic Senate Building, wait inside one of the Eta-2 Actis class interceptors... I sense the Jedi will be coming soon to make their move against me. Once I deal with their treachery I will set the endgame into motion. When I give you the word travel to Mustafar, wipe out Viceroy Gunray and the other Separatist leaders. Take this stun grenade, it will make your task easier," Sidious then reached into his hooded robe and offered Nadara a stun grenade. She took it and placed it inside one of her pouches.
"Yes, Master," Nadara said before bowing and beginning to walk away.
"And Lady Nadara," Sidious began, speaking to her with his back turned. "Do not fail me."
Nadara paused and resumed walking again, she was determined to carry out her task, and she knew there was no looking back. In exchange for the power to help shape the universe the way she wanted to, she had chosen to voluntarily enslave herself to Darth Sidious. It was a deal with the Devil.
The Dark Lord listened to his apprentice's footsteps as she walked away. A sad alien creature. He thought. She was hardly the ideal apprentice he had in mind. He had a low tolerance for non-human species, even if they happened to be near human like Nadara. He was forced to improvise now, having to put aside whatever concerns he may have that despite giving herself over to the Dark Side, that at the core she may still be too much of a Jedi, even if she wasn't consciously aware of it. She would have to do for the time being, the present situation demanded it. He simply had no other options after letting Skywalker slip through his fingers. However, he was already beginning to plan her permanent replacement, and if he was successful in seizing absolute control of the Republic, he would finally have the apprentice he always dreamed of. Even if successful however, he would have to endure looking at her for perhaps the next decade. Nadara was just a tool, and like all tools they can be replaced. She would serve her purpose, and once she had fulfilled it, he would discard her as he had done with the rest. His future plans though would need to wait, for the time being he had to return to his Supreme Chancellor's Suite and wait for the Jedi. Once he dealt with them he would lead a raid on the Jedi Temple to deal the crippling blow.
The Dark Lord of the Sith gazed upon the horizon, looking at the afternoon sun. In a few hours, it would soon set upon Coruscant, and the Republic.
Anakin blinked his eyes open and waited for them to come into focus. He could hear Padmé's voice.
"Hey," she said softly as she stroked his hair with one hand. "How do you feel?"
Anakin didn't have the strength to even sit up, it would seem being poisoned, having his mind linked with Padmé, and then being knocked in the back of the head all within 24 hours had finally caught up with him.
"Exhausted," Anakin managed to say.
Padmé nodded and continued stroking her husband's hair. "Vokara Che says it will probably take you a day maybe two to recover from everything you've been through over the past day..."
Anakin could sense reluctance and remorse from his wife. He knew her well enough to know she probably still blamed herself for what's happened to him.
"Padmé, please, let go of your remorse. Palpatine is to blame, not you. And let's not forget it was actually you who ultimately freed yourself from his grip, I just simply showed you the way how," Anakin said as he squeezed his wife's hand gently.
Padmé smiled at her husband, he always seemed to know just the right things to say to elevate her spirits. "We make a good team, don't we?"
"I've always thought so. Where's Obi-Wan?"
"He left about 7 hours ago. We were informed that Clone Intelligence had discovered the location of General Grievous. He's been hiding in the Utapau System. Since we lost our evidence against Chancellor Palpatine, the Jedi Council felt the best recourse was to destroy Grievous and then arrest him."
Anakin looked up at the ceiling, his thoughts were on his mentor. The two of them had been through so many major battles throughout the war, they had always watched each other's backs, and he felt great regret he could not be there to stand beside Obi-Wan.
"I should be there with him..." Anakin said, his voice conveying guilt and regret.
"Don't worry, Obi-Wan is one of the most capable Jedi in the entire Order. He's proven himself to be resourceful and cunning time and again. He'll be just fine. After he destroys General Grievous the Jedi can take Palpatine into custody, and the Senate can pursue a diplomatic solution to the war," Padmé said to her husband, her tone confident and assured. Anakin smiled, Padmé always seemed in her most natural element when discussing politics. She was the most gifted civil servant he had known. He only hoped after the war she could somehow remain in civil service, because he knew the Republic would need her in the aftermath. As he pondered this it also dawned on him that Padmé said Obi-Wan had departed 7 hours ago, just how long had he been out?
"How long have I been out?"
"Almost 9 hours."
"9 hours!?" Anakin said, trying to sit up before wincing.
Padmé placed her hands gently around her husband and eased him back onto the bed. "Yes, you had a concussion. Vokara Che tended to your wounds, but getting your strength back will take some time."
Anakin rubbed his forehead, his thoughts going back to his encounter with Barriss Offee in his chambers. "Padmé, Barriss was here, she surprised me... I was retrieving your necklace when she came out of nowhere, she struck me in the back of the head and that's all I remember. I wasn't physically 100 percent, otherwise..."
Padmé gave her husband a sad look. Anakin curled his eyebrows in response. "What is it?" He asked, concerned.
"Barriss... She confronted me, Sabé, and Talanta in the council chambers. She stole a security hologram recording we obtained that proved Palpatine was the man who attacked me, and then... She killed Talanta."
Anakin's eyes went wide. Shock, anger, and confusion all coursed through him at once. Talanta wasn't a fighter, even though she carried a lightsaber, she had no natural talent for fighting, always using the Force for healing and helping others.
"Talanta..." Padmé struggled to say, "Talanta, wanting to protect us confronted Barriss, but she was killed by Barriss. She was most brave Ani..."
Anakin closed his eyes and looked away for a few moments, registering the loss of the lovable Jedi healer. One thing was for certain, he would not rest until Palpatine, Barriss, and all those in league with them would answer for their treason, but could he do so without falling to the Dark Side? He opened his eyes and looked back up at his wife.
"Padmé, over the past year I've been feeling it... The pull to the darkness. Barriss' betrayal and the departure of Ahsoka all left a deep impact on me. The only person right now keeping me in the light is you. I won't let anyone, or anything take you away from me." Anakin brought his hand up and caressed his wife's cheek."
Padmé leaned down and drew her husband into a loving embrace and resting her head on his chest. "I'm not going anywhere Ani, I'll always take care of you."
Anakin always felt happiest and at peace when he was with Padmé. He wanted to bring peace to the Republic. He wanted his children to grow up in a universe without war. He wanted his children to not see the dreadful things he's seen over the past several years. During the course of the war he hadn't been able to spend much time with Padmé, and moments like these were ones he treasured.
Padmé looked up at her husband. "Ani, I want to have our baby back home on Naboo. Now that our marriage is no longer a secret, I want to be there with my family. And they're your family now too. You, me, Sabé, my parents, my sister Sola, we'll all take care of one another." Padmé closed her eyes, trying to push the recent trauma she experienced to the back of her mind. She filled her thoughts about her husband and her unborn child. "I'm Mrs. Padmé Skywalker," she said quietly before falling asleep on her husband's chest. Anakin closed his eyes as he held onto his wife, for the time being he felt at peace as he felt sleep beckon to him.
A few hours later Anakin was awoken by the sound of Mace Windu's voice. "Anakin," he called out.
Anakin snapped his eyes open and he focused in on the Jedi Master.
"Anakin, we've just received word that Obi-Wan has destroyed General Grievous. Me, Fisto, Tiin, and Kolar are on our way to arrest the Dark Lord."
Anakin gently shook Padmé awake, her eyes blinked open and the two of them sat up. "Then I am coming with you Master Windu," Anakin stated matter-of-factly.
Mace raised his hand up. "For your own good stay here and rest. You're too weak right now Anakin. You're in no condition to confront the Dark Lord."
Anakin knew Mace was right, he still felt very fatigued and his physical strength had not returned. But one thing was for certain, his feelings told him he needed to be a part of the fight, he had to be there, he must be there.
"Then wait a day Master, I must go with you," Anakin beseeched.
Mace shook his head. "No, we can't afford to wait, we have to act swiftly if the Jedi Order is to survive. The Sith Lord Chancellor will no doubt make his move soon against us. The opportunity to strike is now."
"Then... May the Force be with you Master..." Anakin said, a look of dread falling over his face as Mace Windu turned to leave.
Anakin turned to look at his wife. "I have a bad feeling about this..."
Padmé rubbed her husband's shoulder as Sabé entered the room. "I just saw Masters Windu, Fisto, Tiin, and Kolar leaving. What's going on?"
"They've gone to arrest the Chancellor," Padmé replied.
A feeling of worry washed over Sabé. She feared that Windu's team of four Jedi Masters may not be enough, especially not without Anakin, Yoda, or Obi-Wan. However, she hoped against hope that it would be enough. Sabé looked out the doorway as if she were trying to spot the four Jedi Masters she had passed a few moments ago. "Then may the Force be with us all..."
Mace Windu and his team of Jedi Masters walked down to one of the shuttle landing bays. Unease filled the four men. Kit Fisto turned to address Saesee Tiin.
"I'd feel better if Yoda and Anakin Skywalker were here, or even Kenobi, on Ord Cestus, Obi-Wan and I-"
"Yoda is pinned down on Kashyyyk, Skywalker is too weak right now, and Kenobi is out of contact on Utapau. The Dark Lord has revealed himself, and we dare not hesitate. Think not of if, Master Fisto, this duty has fallen on us. We will suffice, we must suffice! We will have to," Saesee Tiin said in his exchange with Kit Fisto as the Jedi Masters boarded a Republic landing craft. The craft's engines roared to life and lifted off, this would be their chariot into the coming hurricane. The calm before the storm was over.