Star Wars is owned by George Lucas. I own nothing; this is my creative twist to the series
Chapter 10: Captured in Cloud City
Knowing that her little sister was being held hostage on Cloud City, Sola quietly sat on one of the soft lounges inside Qui Gon and Shmi's quarters. Shmi sat next to her, still distressed about her two sons in danger. Her husband couldn't sense them at the moment and this was not good news. Ahsoka wanted to go rescue her friends now but Qui Gon knew that they could risk putting Anakin, Obi Wan, Padme and Hannah in danger more. "But Master Qui Gon, Anakin and Obi Wan need our help right now. We can't wait around any more! They are already in danger right now!" Ahsoka pointed out once more as Qui Gon turned to look at her, "I understand your concern for Anakin and Obi Wan, Ahsoka but we don't know who is on Cloud City that has captured them" he explained to her but Ahsoka was still determined that they should be doing something now. "But Master Qui Gon, we still should be planning a rescue. This shouldn't have happened and it done and that means we need to help them" she argued. "Yes but still until we can perhaps contact the Chancellor first in case he has heard from Senator" he informed her moving over to Shmi, he knelt before her, taking her hands in his's. "Don't worry honey. I'll make sure nothing happen to them. Anakin and Obi Wan have been taught well and perhaps plan their own surprise for their captors" he informed her seeing her raise her tear stained face, "Oh, I just hope you're right" she simply replied, throwing her arms around her husband.
Awoken by cold shivers around her, Padme soon found herself somewhere she didn't recognise. She could feel tiny goose bumps forming on her arms. Pulling herself up into a sitting position, she tries to find her friends in the room. "Anakin! Obi Wan! Hannah!" she called out, "Where are you?" she went on before a familiar voice spoke. "Oh Padme, thank goodness, you're up!" she happily cried, rushing over to her, Padme found it was Hannah, her hair had been pulled back into two plaits at the back of her head. "What's going on? Where are Anakin and Obi Wan?" Padme asked, worry in her voice as Hannah took a deep breath. "Well, shortly after we found out we had been betrayed, we were all thrown into this cell however a short time later, they came back and after a small scuffle with force resistant weapons, they dragged them both from the cell and they haven't come back" she informed her as Padme tried to remember. "How come I don't remember any of that?" she asked making Hannah place one hand on her arm, "Because when they first entered the cell, Anakin wouldn't move and come with them willingly and well, they quickly pushed him out of the way and moved for you, injecting you with a sleep drug that they lied to him and said they "poisoned" you" she explained before going on. "You blacked out right before Anakin lunged for them as well as Obi Wan and didn't see them being dragged out" she informed her, as Padme wrapped her arms around her body, shivering from the cold. Hannah quickly grabbed a nearby blanket. "Here Senator, you need it more than me. You're shivering all over" she laughed as Padme took the blanket, wrapping it around her shoulders. "Thanks, how come you're not cold?" she asked curiously as she smiled. "When you've been to the planet Hoth, you tend to get use to any cold any where else" she pointed out, hearing a sudden cry of pain echoing through the halls. "That sounded bad, I hope it wasn't Obi Wan or Anakin" she muttered before Padme shivered once more, but it wasn't from the cold. "Something tells me it was" she corrected her.
His hands were held into place above his head as he felt blood trickling down the side of his face, he saw his brother nearby, struggling with his resistants just as he felt another jab from the probe droid to the right of him. "Your defiance in revealing where you have stored my plans is angering me more and I can keep you here all day, no one can sense you, Jedi" he spat as Anakin slowly lifted his head towards the man. "I don't know what you are talking about! We don't have your stupid plans! Maybe you're the fool who has lost them!" he spat, right before he screamed in pain once again from electric jolts soaring through his body from the droid. "Stop it! He's telling the truth, leave him alone!" Obi Wan shouted to them. "What would we want with your plans?" he asked them but the man just moved over to Anakin, yanking him by his matted hair. "If you don't talk now, maybe I'll force you to watch as I take advantage of the lovely Senator Amidala, she is a fine beauty" he smirked evilly. This caused Anakin to struggle more with his resistants. "You leave her alone! She's got nothing to do with this!" he shouted at them as the man became more frustrated, "Then tell me where my plans are now!" he roared, while Anakin shot back. "I don't know where they are! It's the truth!" he informed him. The man was growing tired of both Jedi's defiance, turning to his men, he spoke. "Shock them both, inject them with the serum and take them back to their cells. Out of my sight" he spat, storming from the room, he could hear both Anakin and Obi Wan's cries of pain from the probe droids as he continued down the long hall way.
"What are you saying Padme, are you sensing that Anakin may have been reaching out to you just now?" Hannah asked, still confused at what she had been trying to tell her. "I can't explain it Hannah but we heard the screams of pain just moments ago. I got terrible shivers that it was Anakin suffering in pain" she replied, struggling to hold back tears just as they both were startled at the cell door opening, with four men entering, two each carrying Anakin and Obi Wan and roughly dumping them into the floor and simply leaving. Hannah and Padme were instantly by their sides, blood trickling down their faces and arms. "Oh Ani, what happened to you?" Padme asked, with a soft, gentle voice, but full of worry before she felt one of his hands touch her face, "Padme! You're awake! You're not poisoned!" he breathed with relief as she placed her hand on top of his's, "No, it was just a sleeping drug. Hannah says it was to trick you and force you to come with them but it only made you angrier" she told him, lifting one of his arms around her shoulders while Hannah did the same with Obi Wan. "I can't believe we were betrayed" Padme went on as Anakin tried to reach out with the force. "Padme, why can't I use the force, what's happened?" he asked, confused before Hannah spoke up, "After we were betrayed, they struck both with a sleeper dart, and then injected each of you with the ysalamiri serum. It was so you couldn't call for help through the force" she explained before Obi Wan let out a small chuckle. "Well, that's not the wise move because dad's probably felt the disturbance" he corrected her. Padme simply stroked the side of Anakin's face with a corner of the blanket, that had fallen off her shoulders earlier, "Oh Anakin, we were led into a trap and I feel that it's not over yet" she confessed seeing him smile up at her. "Don't worry Padme, I'll protect you. I won't let them touch you. We'll escape this trap" he promised her.
Darra was becoming more and more nervous, especially when she found out that Anakin, Obi Wan, Senator Amidala and Hannah were now trapped on Cloud City. She knew that Siri's old friend had something to do with it and that it was time for Siri to confess to what was going on but for some reason, Siri just wouldn't hear what Darra had to say. "Siri, you can't be serious! You told me that if we allowed this plan to go through, we would secretly go and save Anakin and Obi Wan!" she exclaimed, "Just like old times!" she informed her as Siri shot back. "And what's the point?" she asked her rudely, knocking the holo projector before her to the ground. Darra moved over to the bed, "Siri, you have to tell them what you know" she tried to explain. "Anakin and Obi Wan's lives are in danger. Your "friend" has changed and turned on you. We need to tell them the truth" she persisted, this angered Siri more, spinning around to face Darra. "No! why should I even care?" she asked, "The moment that Obi Wan and Anakin arrive back here, they're still going to be with Hannah and Padme" she pointed out, waving her arms before her, "I don't care! I only care if I can have Obi Wan and you have Anakin" she snapped. "I was a fool to even think of sleeping with someone else while I was with Obi Wan. I don't even know why I did it! And now, he hates me, Anakin hates me and Master Jinn doesn't want me near him most of time" she raved on, "Believe me, if we went to them now and told them what we know, they would be suspicious of how we knew this information and of course, Ahsoka would be on their side" she pointed out to the young girl who only stared at her, shocked. "Siri, please, we may be able to them to like us more with this information" she pleaded. "Keeping it hidden from them, can ruin our friendships with them even more" she went on but Siri didn't care. "No, I don't want just a friendship. I want a love relationship with Obi Wan and I will figure out another way to get it" she scoffed.
Lord Maul sat on one of the lounges inside Administrator Starkiller's office while Ruwee and Palo paced up and down before him, furious that they were still being denied access to see Padme. "I can't believe what I am hearing!" Ruwee exclaimed, "You promised us that we would see her once the trap had been implemented, so where is she!" Ruwee roared. Lord Maul didn't even seem affected by this man's out burst. His yellow eyes moving over to him "Don't worry. You'll see her shortly. Once the Jedi are in the hands of the smugglers, then you may see her and take her away" he assured them. This prompted the administrator to speak up, "Lord Maul, what about Hannah, droids and the Senator's security team?" he asked before Lord Maul turned his gaze over to him. "The security team will be takencare of and as for the other girl and the droids, they must remain on the city, under your control" he informed him. Brendan felt a lump forming in his throat. "How can you say that? That wasn't even in the agreement nor was Senator Amidala being handed over to these men!" he exclaimed angrily not seeing Palo slowly moving towards him until Lord Maul stopped him. "Administrator, you should have known by now that plans are likely to change every now and then and besides you should be happier-with both Jedi and the Senator gone, you can have the other girl fall in love with you" he pointed out seeing the Administrator go silent before he stormed from the office, leaving Palo to glare after him. "Do you think he's planning some secret agenda?" he asked as Lord Maul smirked, "He won't otherwise his city will pay" he assured them.
Gathering together a small security team with him, Brendan quickly moved through his building, towards the lower levels where the cells were located to speak with the new prisoners. How he hated calling them prisoners, they were tricked and it was his fault. He only did it because he was concerned for his people. As the lift descended into the lower levels, he emerged to find no one around-this was good news as it meant that Lord Maul would not find out what he was about to do. Stopping at the door to their cell, he simply activated the code and allowed the door to slide across, stepping into the room. Of course, he already expected their first reaction. Anakin slowly pulled himself up as Padme kept her arms around him. "What are YOU doing in here?" Anakin snapped rudely, "Get out of here!" he shouted but Brendan remained firm with the young Jedi. "Just shut up okay. I have bad news for you and I thought you should know in advance" he informed them as Anakin only shot back, "We wouldn't be in this mess, if you hadn't tricked us!" he informed him, attempting to stand up. "Just listen to me, okay" Brendan tried once more as Obi Wan looked to his brother. "Anakin, let's hear him out. It's better to know than to be left in the dark" he pointed out while Anakin simply rolled his eyes in annoyance, before allowing Brendan to go on. "Okay, Lord Maul has agreed to allow Hannah and the droids to stay here. I promise they'll be safe" he assured them, keeping out the part where he would have control over her, "And Anakin and Obi Wan?" Padme asked him, "He's going to hand them over to the smugglers, who are keen to get back when you have of theirs" he replied but Anakin needed to know. "But what about Padme?" he asked seeing Brendan look away. "Lord Maul has made a deal with her father and some boy named Palo. She's to go with them" he informed her at the same time Padme gasped, "What? My father and Palo are here, how?" she asked, stunned, "They're supposed to be on Courscant! What did you do?" she snapped, while Anakin held her hand, "Don't worry Padme. I won't let them touch you. I swear to you" he assured her, before glaring back at Brendan, finding his feet, he slowly inched himself over towards him. "I knew something was strange, the minute we landed here and that you weren't to be trusted" he started, moving slowly towards him, "And I should have done this the moment you denied us to accompany the Senator to your meeting with her this morning" he pointed out, inching closer, Padme watched how the security officers steadily prepared themselves. Anakin was right about to attack the administrator when three of the officers, attacked him, with their weapons provided to them by Lord Maul earlier. He screamed in pain feeling the electric shocks running through his body. Padme was immediately on her knees beside him while Obi Wan was right behind her, they weren't stopping until Brendan waved his hands before him. "Stop! Stop this right now!" he ordered his men, avoiding Padme's glaring eyes at him. "I thought I was doing the right thing, coming to you about your fates. I was wrong" he sighed as Anakin only rolled his eyes at him. "Yeah, you were really helpful, traitor" he spat before they all left. Padme tried to keep him moving while Obi Wan smirked, "You're either very brave or foolish to attempt what you did brother" he pointed out, just as Padme added "He's just being the hero he is" she smiled, and with one of his arms around her shoulders and his other arm around Obi Wan, they helped him back over to the metal bench close by.
Hurt by Anakin's words to him, that labelled him a traitor, Brendan knew that he had lost the chance of joining the Republic….unlessheturnedthetablesonthenewvisitorshe thought, would they expected a sudden move like that? It was worth a shot, though one person was keen to take advantage of the current situation. "Okay, now will you help me to have the Senator to myself?" came the familiar voice before he turned to see his friend Xizor strolling towards him, his nose was bandaged slightly from his encounter with Anakin. "Xizor, I can't. Lord Maul's handing her over to her father as he has asked" he replied however Xizor only smiled. "Oh but I have made a deal with her father and boyfriend just seconds ago" he corrected him. "Mr Naberrie, would you like to explain my agreement to my friend here" he called out just as Brendan saw a young man, older than Anakin but a year younger than Obi Wan with dark curly hair walking towards him with an older, worn, grey haired man. "Yes, I will. I have agreed to allow Prince Xizor to have my daughter with him, to Senatorial events and allow her to live in his palace with him and in return, he has allowed Palo to have her at nights and have her as his wife" he explained. Brendan was stunned. "You can't do that! She's a young woman herself and she can refuse this!" he argued, this only angered all three men. "She is my daughter and I make all her daughter, just like I did for her older sister!" he roared, before he went on, "So, you, Administrator, you seem to know everything around here. So here's your part of the plan, I wan a holy man in the main room in 10 minutes then a shuttle prepared for a trip to Naboo" he ordered as Brendan just sighed. "Alright, I will do as you wish" he regrettably admitted right as his comlink chimed. "Starkiller here." He answered, "Administrator,LordMaulwishestoseeyoudowninthecarbonitechambers" came his assistant's reply. "I'm on my way" he replied, turning back to Ruwee, Palo and Xizor. "I will have what you requested but you are not to go near the cells in the mean time" he warned them moving away. Thecarbonitechambers,whatdidLordMaulwantwiththem?No!Hewasn'tgoingtouseitontheJedi,washe?Itwaspossible
The Chancellor's office was refusing to say anything about the matter on Cloud City, regarding Senator Amidala, in the hopes of reaching an agreement quietly. However the longer that Qui Gon was unable to sense either of his sons, left him on edge and lash out angrily at anyone who wanted to delay information coming through to them. Ahsoka grunted in frustration, "Ah, this is so unfair. No one's telling us anything and we can't contact Captain Typho or the Administrator of Cloud City and the Chancellor doesn't believe something has happened, so he's no help!" she exclaimed in frustration. She paced up and down the room once more. Sola had quietly left the living room, to attend to her children. Shmi was preparing food for them to eat leaving Qui Gon and Ahsoka to simply think about how they could rescue Anakin, Obi Wan, Padme and Hannah. "Master, if we can't sense them right now, perhaps they're still on Cloud City. Why can't we leave now and fly to the city now?" Ahsoka curiously asked seeing Qui Gon turn his gaze towards her. "It's an interesting question to point out there, Ahsoka but once again, if we are detected, we could easily cause them to harm Anakin, Obi Wan, Padme and Hannah even more" he explained as she slumped back further into the lounge. "I don't like this master, just lying around and waiting. They need our help" she insisted once more at the same time, Qui Gon allowed a small smirk to cross his face. "What is it master?" Ahsoka asked, noticing his smile before she too, felt a light, tremor in the force. "Master! I can sense them, faintly but I can sense them. On Cloud City!" she exclaimed right as the front door slid open before, slowly and silently Darra entered the room, "Master, I have news about why Obi Wan and Anakin were captured and to tell you, would be like betraying another but I think you need to know" she blurted out seeing Qui Gon and Ahsoka turn to her, confused just as Shmi was coming out of the kitchen. "What do you know Darra?" Qui Gon asked her right before Darra broke down even more. "I know who set the trap for Anakin and Obi Wan!" she cried out at the same time, Shmi dropped the tray of food, "What?" Qui Gon, gritting his teeth together, "I'm so sorry Master Qui Gon, I should have come to you before but I was afraid and didn't know what to do" she sobbed as Ahsoka simply looked to Qui Gon, who moved towards Darra. "Darra, who set the trap and who else knows?" he asked her once again as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "They're smugglers and apparently were on Dxun when Anakin and Obi Wan were. They had some files on the computer that Anakin and Obi Wan must have copied over to R2 and now they want them back. They've teamed up with some dark figure to capture them and what's worse was that Siri knew even before they acted" she sobbed. Qui Gon felt his fist tightened Siri!Howcouldshe?SheclaimstoloveObiWanallthistimebutshewaswillingtobetrayhimforsmugglers?"Darra, are you sure this is true?" he asked seeing her sadly nod. "I'm afraid so Master Qui Gon" she tearfully replied as Ahsoka only folded her arms before her, rolling her eyes. "And where is Siri now?" she asked her as Darra turned her. "She's in her quarters. She doesn't know I came to you. She doesn't care what happens to Obi Wan or Anakin on Cloud City because when they eventually return here, they'll still be with Padme and Hannah" she informed her. Ahsoka scoffed, "Some friend she is" she snapped before Qui Gon rose to his feet. "We'll have to talk to her later, for now, let's head over to speak with Chancellor Palpatine. He can't keep covering something up like this" he informed her just as another voice entered the room. "I'm going with you" came Sola's voice. "If that is what you want" Qui Gon simply replied as she nodded. "It is, Ryoo and Pooja will be fine here and Padme is my baby sister. I don't want to see anything bad happen to her anymore" she went on while he nodded, before shortly Sola, Qui Gon and Ahsoka quickly exited the quarters-smugglers!Smugglershelpedintheircapture.Butwhowashelpingthesmugglers?
After his sudden encounter with Xizor, Ruwee and Palo, Brendan proceeded down to the carbonite chambers, along the way, summoning his assistant to call for a holy man to gather in the main room. Thisisgettingworsebytheminute!He thought to himself. He entered the dark carbonite chambers, avoiding his brother's glare to him and moved over to Lord Maul. "You called for me, Lord Maul" he spoke strongly at the same time, he turned to acknowledge him-yellow eyes gleaming at him. "Yes, the smugglers were asking me about how to leave the city with both Jedi as their prisoners and suggested putting them into carbonite" he explained. "You can't do that! We've never placed humans in carbonite before. Even a Jedi has a chance of been killed" he warned him however Lord Maul remained unaffected by his outburst. "Perhaps we need a test, bring me one of the Senator's security officers" he instructed him. "We shall test it on them" he informed him, as Brendan hated to ask but he had to know. "And what about the Senator?" he asked curiously. Lord Maul slowly turned around. "Have her brought to the main room where her father and boyfriend will be waiting" he ordered as Brendan simply nodded, he didn't dare question his orders especially since Ruwee had already asked for a holy man in the main room. That's when it hit him, Sothat'swhytheyareworkingwithLordMaul,forSenatorAmidala'shandinmarriage.AnakinSkywalkerwouldnotliketoknowthis
Wondering how long they were going to be kept in their cell, Anakin and Padme kept close to each other while Obi Wan and Hannah sat nearby, snuggled together. Padme was becoming sceptical more and more that they would not get out of here together with the knowledge of her father and ex boyfriend here and Anakin could sense her worries. "We're going to get out of here, Padme, that's a promise. I will not let them touch you once more" he assured her seeing her raise her head up to meet his gaze. "Oh Anakin, I want to believe you but I know my father and he is very persistent. If he is here, he will find a way to separate us" she pointed out, holding back small tears before he gently touched her face, wiping a tear away with his finger. "He may your father Padme, but I love you more than he does and I will protect you" he promised her just as she felt his lips touched hers in a beautiful soft passionate kiss however Obi Wan's voice broke their moment. "And now I think we're going to have more visitors" he warned them, hearing the quick, hurried footsteps approaching their cell and the door sliding across. They expected more of the Administrator's guards but instead battle droids entered in the room, holding their blasters towards them at the same time, a well dressed officer entered the cell. "Well, well, it's nice to finally meet Senator Amidala. It is time you were…." He paused, before smirking, "Reacquaintedwith some oldfriends" he informed her but Anakin kept his hold on her, "She's not going anywhere. You're not even going to touch her!" he spat however the man only laughed. "As I told Lord Maul that you would resist, I have prepared myself. Droids, stand aside and guards, get the Senator" he snapped. The droids moved aside as four guards pushed past, two kept Obi Wan and Hannah from moving over to Anakin and Padme while one ripped Padme straight from Anakin's arms causing Anakin to push forward only to feel the shear force of the last guard's weapon right into his stomach causing him to fall to the ground. "Anakin!" Padme screamed, fighting the man's grip before her hands were shackled together then pushed from the cell, followed by the battle droids. "Don't worry Jedi, you'll be takencareof soon" he smirked exiting last at the same time, Obi Wan and Hannah rushed over to Anakin, "Oh Anakin, you are just always being the hero" Hannah smirked, brushing a loose strand of his hair from his eyes while Obi Wan helped his younger brother back up on his feet and over to the seat.
Tears still wet in her eyes, Padme was dragged through the halls that were right now, empty. Something that told Padme, something was not right here-yesterday at this time, the halls were bursting with all life forms moving around, today empty. Pushed once more through the double white doors, she gasped because directly ahead of her, was her father, evil glare piercing straight at her and Palo, a man she thought she would never see again. "Ah my dear daughter, you thought that you could just run off to Courscant, become Senator and fall in love with who ever you want?" he laughed, slowly moving towards her. "Sorry, but that isn't going to happen, because in a few moments, you'll be married to Palo and also, be the trophy of this rich man" he informed her, moving to aside, she gasped even louder, seeing Xizor coming towards her, raising her shackled hands to his slimy green lips, "Senator Amidala, at last we can be alone together without your meddling friends" he told her. Pulling her hands away, she cried, "I won't do this! I love Anakin and he loves me! I'm in love with him" she cried not before she was back handed across her right cheek by Ruwee. "That is enough about Skywalker! Soon he will be well away from us, encased in carbonite along with his brother" he explained. Padme's eyes widen in fear. "No, please! They haven't done anything wrong, except save me!" she cried however another sinister laugh joined them. "Save you? They stole you from me" came Palo's voice, taking her in his grip. "And I'm here to claim you back, you're mine Padme. Always will be" he whispered into her ear while she tried to turn away only to have him pull her back, forcing his rough lips directly onto hers. OhAnakin,helpmeplease!She cried.
"OhAnakin,helpmeplease!" came the horrid cry alerting Anakin to his new surroundings. "Padme!" he cried, "Padme! Where are you?" he asked out loud, reaching further with his senses, he then sensed Palo, "Obi Wan! What's going on?"he called out to his brother who stepped forward. "We're still trapped in our cell and Padme's been taken somewhere else" he informed him meeting Anakin's eyes, "I know that, with Palo tormenting her right now" he growled, trying to sit up when another voice stopped him. "Anakin, you need to lie down. You've been through a lot in the past few hours and I will not allow you to strain yourself further" they warned as he recognised Hannah's stern voice. "Okay, mom" he teased with a slight smirk, making Hannah slap his arm. "I'm serious Anakin" she warned him right before he heard Padme cry out to him, Anakin,pleasehelpme!Timeisrunningout!She cried as Anakin felt his heart aching knowing his beloved was in danger. "We have to get out of here and rescue Padme. We don't have much time left" he informed them making Obi Wan agree. "I agree with Anakin. Padme is in danger right now" he told them however all three were startled by the sound of the cell door sliding across. The same well dressed officer from before appeared before them, along with Administrator Starkiller, "Cuff the two Jedi's wrists together and have them follow us" he ordered, then he pulled Hannah into his grasp along side him, her wrists cuffed together as well. "You my dear, will have the pleasure of seeing your friends encased in carbonite" he informed her. Her eyes widen in horror, looking back to Anakin and Obi Wan who met each other's gaze. Nowwereallyneedtogetoutofherethey each thought. The officer turned to Brendan, "You, lead the way now!" he snapped before watching him wordlessly, exit the cell then the officer and Hannah and finally the guards with Anakin and Obi Wan. What no one suspected was some unexpected help coming their way.
Having arrived at the Chancellor's office a short time ago, Qui Gon, Ahsoka and Sola found that Chancellor Palpatine was refusing to dispel any sudden disturbances on Cloud City, saying that he had contacted the Administrator a short time ago, who informed him that negotiations were going well between the Republic and his city and right now, everyone was having time to themselves. However none of them were buying it. "Chancellor, please, you have to help us. Ruwee and Palo have entered local security forces and if they discover she's in the city, there could be serious dangerous outbursts" Ahsoka explained seeing Sola nod, "Yes, Anakin cares for my sister very much and won't let my father touch her again however they can have him eliminated out of the way" she went on. "Yes Chancellor and a Jedi's force sense just doesn't disappear all of a sudden for a long period of time. We believe that you have been lied too and you must give us contact with the Administrator" Qui Gon insisted however Palpatine only rose to his feet, moving to his large glass window. "I'm afraid that is out of the question Master Jedi. We want these negotiations to succeed not fail. Anakin and Obi Wan will contact you if they need your help" he simply smiled not seeing Ahsoka grip the corner of the desk. "Master,Ican'tsenseAnakinorObiWanagain" she whispered under her breath seeing him nod. "Yes, the Chancellor is not revealing all he knows and we'll just have to take matters into our own hands" he informed her turning to the Chancellor. "Thank you for your time Chancellor, we'll leave you now" he assured him and left the office. "So we're going to Cloud City then?" Sola asked as Qui Gon nodded, "Yes however, your father doesn't know that you are here. If he was to discover you, he can take his anger out on Padme more. I need to remain here" he insisted before she sadly agreed. "I understand, just bring them home" she softly replied as they proceeded through the twisting halls of the Senate chamber.
Proceeding down to the carbonite chambers, the officer remained completely unaware of what the Administrator had planned, keeping his grip on Hannah's right arm. They rounded another corner when suddenly, about 20 of Brendan's personal security forces surrounded them with their own weapons. The officer was furious, "What is going on here!" he exclaimed angrily, "Have you decided to betray Lord Maul?" he went on, watching Brendan collect all the weapons of the stunned guards, collecting two for Hannah and him. "Just making the right decision" he corrected him, turning to his assistant. "Take them to the north security tower, ensuring that you are not followed" he warned her while she nodded and they were gone. Brendan quickly moved to release Hannah, Anakin and Obi Wan's shackled wrists. "So you've been playing both sides haven't you?" she snapped angrily as he replied. "When the original plan changed, I started to question my own morals and I chose the Republic" he informed them handing both Jedi their lightsabers. "Now, we don't have much time before Lord Maul discovers what has happened but we have to get to the main quarters now" he urged them, "What did you do to Padme?" Hannah asked seeing him look away. "Her father's asked for a holy man to marry Palo and her before they leave for Naboo" he told them. Anakin felt his blood boiling however without a reply, he quickly sped down the hallway, back the way they came. HangonPadme.I'mcoming!He called out to her. He only wished that he had more time, just enough time to feel Brendan squirm as he would have held his lightsaber to his neck.
HangonPadme.I'mcomingPadme felt Anakin calling out to her as she desperately tried to fight Palo's grip on her as the holy man continued. She had attempted to stall the ceremony for as much as she could but Ruwee and Palo were already prepared and to prevent her further protests and cries, had tied a small piece of thin cloth around her mouth. As the holy man reached the end, "Do you Senator Padme Amidala Naberrie take Palo Anderson to be your lawfully wedded husband?" he asked seeing her shake her head, trying to speak through the gag before Palo backhanded her once more. "She does and I do, so let's end this" he threatened him. "If there is anyone who objects to this union, speak now or further hold your peace" he told the small crowd. Padme felt the tears once more when there was silence. "Well, then I now announce…" he was cut off by the sudden slamming of the doors. "Stop! I object" Anakin cried, racing towards them, lightsaber blaring. "Step away from the Senator!" he warned them angrily however Palo kept his tight grip on Padme. "You're supposed to be in carbonite!" he exclaimed, seeing the Administrator rushing in with Obi Wan and Hannah. "You traitor, Lord Maul will see you dead and your city burn!" he informed him as Anakin force jumped directly in front of him, his lightsaber to Palo's neck. "Release the Senator now!" he warned him however Palo didn't budge so Anakin simply raised his lightsaber and sliced off Palo's arm from the elbow, he roared in pain, Padme fell from his grip while Ruwee raced towards them but Anakin was too quick, grabbing Padme in his grip, slicing through her shackles, she pulled the gag from her mouth "Oh Anakin" she happily cried, arms around his neck, he smirked. "I told you I would not let them take you away from me" he pointed out. "Skywalker!" Ruwee screamed in anger towards them, "Anakin, Padme, let's go now!" Obi Wan called out to them, keeping Xizor's guards at bay. "Come on angel time to go!" Anakin told her, grabbing her hand, they raced over to their friends before quickly rushing from the room.
Cowering from the attack, Xizor emerged to find Palo, screaming in pain and Ruwee angrily staring at him. "Oh stop your whining you pathetic man! You'll live" he snapped to Palo spinning round to what was left of his guards. "Go on, after them! Quickly before they can leave" he ordered them when Ruwee spoke. "Well, is the deal off?" he asked seeing Xizor smirk. "No, it's on but we'll do what I say" he informed him, moving off, "Come, we're on our own now. Lord Maul has left the city and we're on our own now" he explained just as two healers helped Palo onto a stretcher, wheeling him away while Ruwee, Xixor and Xizor's human replica droid Guri followed towards Xizor's own personal ship.
Running from the blaster fire, Anakin, Obi Wan, Padme, Hannah and Brendan all raced for Padme's ship-half of her security team had been killed but Brendan had previously freed Captain Typho, Sabe, Dorme and the droids who were already at the ship. Stopping to deflect the bolts, Padme wouldn't leave Anakin's side as he fought alongside with Obi Wan. "Padme! Go, I'll meet you at the ship!" he exclaimed to her however she remained hesitant, "Padme, please, it's too dangerous. Go!" he cried out meeting her gaze. She saw the worry in his eyes, nodding silently and running after Hannah and Brendan. With half of the droids and Xizor's security team killed, Obi Wan turned to Anakin, "Time to go" he called out to his brother who nodded, "I think so!" he replied and defecting the next two shots, Anakin and Obi Wan raced through the open door straight across the landing platform, with Anakin raced to the cockpit. "Let's get out of here! Obi Wan, prep the ship for Courscant!" he called out, lifting the ship out of the atmosphere. "Prep the hyper drive for our return to Courscant" Anakin ordered Captain Typho just as Obi Wan slid into the seat opposite Anakin, flipping on the communications transmitter and seconds later, they saw their father staring up at them. "Anakin, Obi Wan, where are you? What's going on?" he demanded straight out. Anakin exchanged a glance with Obi Wan before Obi Wan replied. "We're just leaving Bespin's atmosphere on our return to Courscant. We managed to escape the city, thanks to some unlikely help. Where are you?" he asked him as Qui Gon answered quickly. "We've just entered hyper space on route to Cloud City. We'll have to turn the ship around once we exit hyperspace" he informed him. "Good to see you all are alright" he added before the communication ended at the same time, the console before Anakin started to blare loudly, flashing red. "What's going on?" Padme asked, looking to Anakin who had noticed several changes to the nav computer. "Oh no, this isn't good" he muttered. "Anakin, don't say that. You're the best pilot out of all of us. You can't know what that means" Obi Wan warned him causing Anakin to glare across at him. "I know what the ship's saying. The ship's saying that the coordinates for Courscant have been changed. Once we re emerge from hyperspace, we'll be long away from Courscant" he explained. "And where will we be exactly?" Hannah asked from behind Padme, seeing Anakin turn around to her. "According to the nav computer, we'll end up in the Malachor System" he answered her. Obi Wan was confused. "Malachor System? There's nothing out there, who would want to send us there?" he asked as Anakin got a suspicion. "I think I know. Let's set the ship for hyper space and then have another word with the Administrator" he explained right before he pulled the hyper drive switch forward, the stars streaked by before it sent the ship launching into hyperspace.
Uh oh, why was the ship programmed to take them to the Malachor system? Does the Administrator know something they don't? Are they still be followed? Dangers are lurking around every corner and Malachor is not a safe system for anyone to be, even after the End of the Jedi Civil War many years ago. What will our heroes find there, you'll have to keep reading! But for now, here are some more teasers to enjoy: