A/N: S-Wanderer999 kindly pointed out that I had a duplicate chapter. I deleted the faulty version. Obviously, the latter was toasted. Anyway, that means that the previous Chapter 24 is now 23 and those of you who read it before May 20 need to read Chapter 24 again, being that the order was slightly screwed up. So. . . go read that first! Then, come back here and read this chapter! Thanks, and sorry I made that mistake!

"Call for two more squads to help! Hurry!" The General was shouting frantically at the two subordinates in the tank.

A youth in uniform nodded, headphones covering his ears. Several frustrated moments passed, until he exclaimed, "They've jammed our transmissions! There is now way to get through to the Palace - how can they do it?"

"What?!"

"I'm sorry sir, but there's nothing I can do."

The Imperial yelled in aggravation as he was forced to order a temporary retreat from the dogfight he had thought was going to be like shooting practice for his under-experienced men. He had been proven extremely wrong. Already, half of his own men had fallen, their technology burning to the ground. Yet they had only managed to exterminate a third of their amphibian opposition.

As the diminished Imperials sunk back into the safety of the descending side of the hill, Boss Tarpals bellowed hoarsely, "FORWARD!"

Like a stampede, the Gungans and their kaadus ran wildly in the enemy's direction. The warriors were fueled by the knowledge that they were actually winning. Abso Bar and his father were at the forefront, running as fast as they could, spears in clutched tightly in their four-fingered hands.

Lana So Gallos was coming up from the other side of the hill, swerving around the Empire's machines and stopping them effectively in their tracks. She and the others behind her began to charge forward, small boomers on slings, and an active amount of adrenalin in their systems.

In a matter of minutes, the Gungans, both green and orange, encircled the few remaining tanks and Scout Walkers as the Imperial occupants clambered out with their hands above their heads. They had surrendered.

The elated Gungans cheered for their victory, went about taking weapons, and further disabling the Imperial machines. Meanwhile, Jar Jar looked in the direction of Theed, wondering whether his friends were having the same luck. He prayed that they did.

With the strange tingly sensation in his arm and on his neck, Luke barely paid a moments notice before Force-pushing a band of stormtroopers out of his way. He needed to hurry, before something - death, maybe? - could happen.

As his legs were straining with speed, his mind was also racing; thinking, that is, of the night before. Sabe's misplaced dreams and odd memories coupled with the visions Luke himself had been experiencing put his brain in a muddle. Why, how could she know these things?

What was it he had felt in her presence when they had first met? It was. . .

Familiar.

Her memories and visions of his father, of even his mother were inconceivably. . .

Familiar.

Her face, gestures, almost everything about her was. . .

Familiar.

Was it possible that she wasn't Sabe, as she claimed to be? That maybe, after all, Eirtae had been wrong when she had assumed the amnesiac woman was Sabe? Even though "Padme" had been buried, was it possible that the family had had the wrong body after all?

And more importantly, was Luke seriously considering that Sabe Corrin was not in fact Sabe Corrin, but his mother?

Luke could have slapped himself for not seeing the truth sooner. Especially when it had been right in front of his face this whole time. He was overcome with joy and a sense of urgency to save Sabe's -no, Padme's- life. It was at that point in which Luke realized that his mother still did not know of her true identity. Padme was still under the impression that she was Sabe.

Somehow, the Jedi's legs managed to form rapid steps as these conclusions coursed through his head. He sensed that she was getting closer, but at the same time, he could feel her slowly slipping away.

"No. . . no. . ." he muttered under his breath, trying to hold on to her Force-signature just a bit longer.

He had to save her!

Now, Luke descended the same staircase he had before. The air went cold, and his breath came out in small puffs. In the underground level, the lighting was dim, almost nonexistent. He could sense his sister and mother close by.

It seemed hours before he ever burst open through the Imperial laboratory. He was panting and sweating anxiously, his emotions slightly clouding his consciousness, and he was unable to see where everything was - the room was shrouded in darkness. The power was still off, and there were no lights around. Cautiously, Luke stepped forward.

As if an answer to his worries, a loud, droid-like sound filled his ears, and a sharp white light temporarily blinded him.

Rubbing his eyes in order to get used to the brightness, he grumbled, "Great. Power's back."

After blinking, he saw a dark lump around the corner of the table. Someone was dead.

But it wasn't Padme. It was Jaren.

The sallow-skinned man was draped loosely over Padme's body. Using the Force, Luke lifted the corpse and placed it gently atop another bare table. Leia was splayed on the floor, unconscious. Luke sighed in relief, seeing that she was not too injured.

His blue eyes then found his mother's face. His mother's face.

Immediately he rushed to her, put her in a sitting position. Cold perspiration covered Padme's body, and her face had turned a jaundice-grey color. It was a combination of a sickly complexion and a depressed expression. The remaining visible parts of her skin looked bruised black and blue. Her hand was bleeding slowly onto the ground.

Luke shook her gently.

"Sabe. . . Padme. It's Luke. Please, wake up. Wake up, please."

When she didn't respond, he tried using the Force to bring her back. It was no use. She had gone under.

"Come on! You can't die too. You can't. Please!" His voice was breaking as tears escaped the corners of his eyes.

She couldn't die! He had just discovered that she had survived all those years ago. They had never even known each other, never had a chance to truly form a relationship. Fate couldn't be this cruel so many times over. She had to live, but Luke could feel her presence weakening.

"Stay with me, Mother. I love you. Leia and I still need you. Stay with us, Mother."

Padme was light in her son's arms as Luke held her, crying softly.

And deep within her, something awoke.

She heard.