Hi guys! I'm back with another chapter for you. Hope you enjoy!
Padme opened her eyes, feeling the how puffy they must be from all her crying last night. She saw she was still holding Anakin's pillow and could still smell his scent. She looked around and ran her fingers through her hair, wondering what time it must be. She huffed not caring and putting the pillow over her face.
She wanted to stay her all day and not move. She didn't want to talk to people and deal with people or do anything.
Slowly she removed the pillow knowing she had to get up. Lying in bed and self-pitting wasn't going to do anything. It wasn't going to bring her Ani back to her.
She got out of bed, showered and changed her clothes. She looked in the mirror and how sad and broken she still looked. She stood up taller and pushing those feelings away. She needed to be strong. She knew crying wasn't going to help Anakin.
She opened her door and saw Ahsoka standing there, ready to knock.
"Ahsoka." She put on a smile small.
"You're awake?" Ahsoka said as Padme walked with her.
"Well of course. There is still stuff that needs to be done and now we got the gas and we can start planning the attacks." Padme hoping her voice sound as poise and strong as she was trying to make it.
"Are you sure? You don't have to put on a strong face, Padme." Ahsoka frowning slightly.
Padme stopped and put her hand on Ahsoka's shoulder. "I'm okay, Ahsoka. I need to do this. We need to end this war, once and for all." And get Anakin back. She thought, but didn't want to say.
"Alright. They started the meeting without you, but we shouldn't have missed too much." Ahsoka told her.
"Thank you, Ahsoka." She smiled at her as they continued walking.
When she stepped in everyone grew silent and turned to look at her. She sat down in her seat, hoping they would continue with their conversation.
"We didn't think you would be coming." Bail said and Padme could see the worry in his eyes.
"Why wouldn't I?" She asked. "Now, since we have the gas when do we plan on commencing the attacks?"
"Um, we were actually just discussing that." Bail looking at Padme one last time to make sure she was truly okay, before continuing. "There will be three attacks. Master Kenobi, Ahsoka, and Captain Rex will each be in-charge of a group. They will all go to different parts of the city and trying to draw a small crowd of troopers. We already told our intel to inform Palpatine about an up-coming attack, so he should be ready."
"I think we will need a least a day to make sure our troops are up for the task." Obi-wan said.
"Very well. Tomorrow, before nightfall, we will commonsense the attacks." Bail said.
Padme hated having to wait another a whole day for this. She wanted to do this now. The sooner these attacks were done, the quicker they would have an army, and the quicker they could attack Palpatine.
She sighed moving her hand to her stomach, knowing they couldn't rush this. They needed to take their time and make sure they were ready this time. They couldn't fail this attack. Everything counted on it.
Anakin laid on the cold cell floor, still feeling groggy. He wasn't sure what kind of drug they inserted in his neck back at the temple, but he could barely move. He couldn't feel the pain from the blasters anymore, but he had no idea what day or even how long he has been here. It could be only hours, maybe days? He wasn't sure, but he had no strength to try and figure out an escape plan.
He heard his cell door open and tried to get himself into a sitting position, but even that was a struggle. He looked up as two guards dress in all red entered first and then Palpatine followed.
Anakin clenched his jaw so tight he thought it might break.
"Lord Vader," Palpatine said cheerful, like they weren't in a holding cell and were just two old friends meeting for a drink. "I hope my guards have been treating you kindly."
"They shot me, but you already knew that you slimy no good nerf herder." He lunged forward, which was basically just him falling towards him, only to be greeted with a hit to the side by one of the Imperial Guard's force pikes.
He fell to the ground trying to fight through the pain he was feeling. A small groan escaped his lips.
"It truly is a pity it had to come to this. I had so much hope for you." Palpatine shook his head.
"Are you going to keep talking or are you going to kill me? Cause honestly I'm not sure what is the worse outcome at the moment." Anakin said looking at him with hatred in his eyes.
Palpatine glared down at him. "I was hoping we could come to an agreement and it didn't have to come down to your death."
"My days of being your slave are over. I'm done listening to your lies." Anakin said moving himself into a sitting position.
"Slave? Dear boy have they twisted your mind so much that you forgot, I'm the one who freed you. I'm the one who saved you from that awful planet." Palpatine told him.
"You freed me from one slave life and put me into another." He said hating how he couldn't wrap his hands around his throat right now, like he wanted to. Even force choking seemed to be too much. He tried and he was clearly still talking, so that didn't work.
Palpatine face fell flat. "You seem to forget all I have given you over the years. Power, wealth, respect. I even had my medical droids, fix your recent injuries."
"Injuries you caused! You made me think those were the only important things in life, but I've come to see there is so much more." Anakin softly said the last part.
He thought of Padme's smile and her laugh. He thought of her tiny soft hands comforting him, more times than he could count. He thought of Ahsoka and Obi-wan who put aside their past feelings of him and helped him over-come some of his fears, when they could have so easily have killed him. He thought of training with them and them helping rid the darkness in him. He thought of his mother, how she always wanted to much for him, much more than a slave's life.
"You are willing to give up everything for love." Palpatine sighed shaking his head. "For a life with the Senator, that can so easily be taken from you."
"You will not lay one finger on her!" He screamed as he shoved Palpatine into the wall using the force.
His two guards made their way over to Anakin, but Palpatine stopped them as he brushed himself off. "I won't, but the army that is on their way to the little rebel base probably will." He smirked.
"No. No. You can't." Anakin said as his eye grew wide knowing there weren't nearly enough of them to stop any sort of attack, let alone an attack they weren't planning for. Anakin looked around and saw how close the one guard was to him. Quickly he grabbed the pike and sent the guard flying into the wall knocking him out. Anakin stood up feeling the force run through his body giving him strength. He swung the pike at the other guard hitting him in the head. He looked over seeing all that was left was Palpatine, surely this pike wasn't his lightsaber, but he would make it work. He gripped the handle tighter and walked over to him ready to wipe that smug look right off his face.
"Before you strike me down, just know I am the only one who can stop this attack." Palpatine said causing Anakin to pause.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"All I need to do is give the simple comment to stop the attack. If you kill me, I surely won't be able to do that and Padme will die." Palatine said that smirk never leaving his face.
"Why would you stop the attack? You won't! This is a trick." Anakin yelled.
"The attack could be stop and Padme and all you're little rebel friends could be saved. But only if you pledge your alliance to me again and join me as again as Darth Vader, will I sent out the command." Palpatine watched as Anakin's face started to fall flat as he thought of what to do.
"You would stop the attacks against them, knowing you could end them once and for all, if I join you again." Anakin softly said.
"I will stop this attack and allow them to escape this once, but I can't make any promises for the future." Palpatine told him. "But this would give them time to relocate."
"How can I be so sure you will keep your promise and aren't lying to me?" He asked.
"Do you really want to take the risk of her dying knowing you had the power to stop it?" Palpatine spoke sounding sincere, but Anakin knew it was all part of his game.
Anakin looked at the pike and then back at Palpatine. He knew he lost and Palpatine won. They both knew Anakin would do anything, if it meant keeping Padme safe. He kept picturing, he dying in his dreams and knew he couldn't let that happen.
Slowly he dropped the pike, feeling week again. He fell to his knees. "Padme won't be harmed. You swear?"
"I promise I will call off this attack and she will not be harmed, during it." Palpatine smirked enjoying seeing his cocky apprentice kneeling before him.
Anakin hated the words he was about to say, but if it was the only way he could save Padme, then he would do it. "I will do whatever you say, master."
Padme tossed and turned in bed, before finally giving up, knowing it was no use. She sighed looking at the empty space next to her. Please be okay. We need you to be okay. She felt her hormones getting the best of her and didn't want to cry anymore.
She stepped out of bed and put on her robe, hoping walking might take her mind off of things.
She walked down the hall and noticed how quiet it was. Besides the few people keeping watching, mostly everyone was asleep.
"Miss. Padme, is everything already?" She heard the worried voice of C3po say behind her.
She smiled slightly and turned around and saw the gold droid and R2. "I'm alright, C3po. Just going for a walk. "She looked as R2 rolled over to her making a sad whistling voice. "I'm okay, R2."
"Don't you worry. As I've told R2 many times, Master Ani will be alright and return. I just know he will." C3po said tying to cheer her up, but she went on this walk to try to clear her mind away from thinking about him and this definitely wasn't doing that.
"I hope you're right." She softly said moving her hand to her stomach. She gave them one last smile and continued with her walk.
She heard C3po hit R2 and say, "I told you talking about Master Ani would only upset her you imbecile."
Padme chuckled softly to herself as she turned the corner towards the hallway leading to the conference room. She saw the light was on and looked to see Bail in there looking over the plans for the recent attack.
"Shouldn't you be sleep, before the big attack?" She joked.
Bail looked up startled until he saw it was her. "I could say the same thing about you."
"Too much on my mind." She told him thankful Bail didn't push her more on the subject.
"I understand. Mon feels the same way. Neither of us thought, this was how the rebellion was going to turn out. No one saw any of this coming." Bail said and Padme looked at him and like it has done to all them, he looked tired and worn.
"Hopefully, after tomorrow, or I guess today." She slightly chuckled realizing it was the middle of the night. "We can be one step closer to victory."
"I hope you are right." He said before sitting down in the chair and moving his hand to his forehead. "Every day I fear it will be the last I hear of my wife and my family."
"Why isn't she here? I was surprised by that." Padme asked.
"She couldn't leave her people behind to suffer." Bail smiled halfheartedly.
"I understand that." She said thinking of when she was queen how she hated leaving her people behind to suffer without her. "I've been thinking about my family a lot too. I haven't been able to contact them, since this all started. I don't even know if they are okay."
"If they are anything like you, they are fighters. They should be fine." Bail tried cheering her up.
She smiled hoping he was right. Everyone has lost something or someone in this war, she hoped she wouldn't lose anymore.
She opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the alarms going off. Quickly Bail shot up and they both ran out of the room to the control center.
"What do you think it is?" Padme asked fearing the worse.
"I fear we got too lucky hiding out as long as we have." Bail said as they got to the control center, seeing Mon, Obi-wan, and Ahsoka already there.
"What is it?" Padme asked.
"An army. They seem to be making their way to us." Mon told them.
Padme's hands moved her mouth before slowly moving her to stomach.
"What do we do? There aren't nearly enough of us to stop them and we don't have enough time to move everyone out." Bail alarmingly said.
"We need to load up the transport and move out as many people as we can." Mon answered.
"Not yet we do." They all turned around and saw Yoda making his way over. She was surprised, since the attack, he hasn't left the mediation room, blaming himself for the failures of the Jedi.
"Master Yoda, they are here. They figured out our location." Obi-wan said not understand what his master was saying.
Suddenly, they looked at the Radar showing them the troops and saw them all turning around and leaving.
"They are leaving?" Ahsoka said as they all turned to the holocam to see for themselves.
"I don't understand. They were about to attack. Why would they leave?" Mon said.
"This has to be a trap." Bail said.
"A trap it is not. Not in the way you are thinking." Yoda said. "A trap Skywalker has walken into." He shook his head. "But not a trap for us."
"Anakin? What do you mean? Is he okay?" Padme asked as all her fears showing on her face.
"Can't say. Clouded his future has become. For the time being, safe we are. After the attacks, relocate we must." He nodded his head and proceeded to walk away leaving them all just staring at him.
"Do we trust him? Is this not a trap?" Mon questioned.
Obi-wan paused stroking his beard, unsure of what to do. "For the time being, I think we should. After the attacks, we can look into moving to a new base."
Padme barely even heard him as all she could think about was Anakin waking into a trap and his future suddenly becoming clouded. She hated how he talked sometime. Always in riddles. She just hoped her Ani was alright. She thought biting her lip nervously.
Ahsoka looked over at Obi-wan unease, as they both walked away from the Senators.
"Do you think Master Yoda is right?" Ahsoka asked.
"About this attack yes. I sense the dark side growing stronger and I fear about Anakin's future though." Obi-wan said.
"You don't think he would turn against us? Against Padme? Do you?" Ahsoka shook her head unable to believe it. It a short time, she could see how much Anakin has changed. There was no way he would turn on them.
"I'm unsure, but I fear the worse." Obi-wan told her looking back at Padme's fear stricken face. He could see how tired she was looking, but there was something else. Something he couldn't put his finger on.