Chapter 12 - The Alliance
DISCLAIMER: We do not own Star Wars or any of the characters in it, though we wish we did. We only own Aniya Skywalker and Jaufre (pronounced Jaw-Free) Naberrie. =)
Anakin Skywalker
Towering trees surround us on all sides as our procession moves away from the ship. Thick undergrowth covers the forest floor. I've never seen trees before in my life, or water in such vast quantities. Our surroundings practically radiate with an aura of life and peace, a strange feeling I'm far from accustomed to, but it's wonderful.
Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon, and Captain Panaka stand tensely several yards away from us, waiting at the edge of a swamp for Jar Jar to return. He was sent on a mission to go see if the Gungans will be able to help us. If not, it sounds like the situation will be practically hopeless.
Qui-Gon moves closer to the swamp, and Obi-Wan goes over to join him. The waiting is making me bored, but I know the state of affairs is dire. I hope the Gungans can help us somehow.
Aniya walks a short distance off, stopping next to a small bush. "I've never seen plants like this," she muses.
"Of course not. It's a different planet," I remind her, eyeing the plants. The trees rise dozens of feet off the forest floor, their branches spreading out thickly enough to block out much of the sunlight. I idly step over to one of them, running a hand across its trunk. The bark is a rough brown, covered with millions of intricate designs.
"And considering you're from Tatooine, I assume you have no idea how to climb trees," Jaufre says suddenly appearing behind us.
"You know how to?" I ask interestedly. He smirks in response, walking over to a slightly smaller tree and starts climbing.
"I really don't think now is the time for that," Padme calls, approaching us with a frown.
"I think we could all do with some stress relief," her brother retorts, pausing at a large branch. Yes, I think we can all agree with that. Padme's just extra worried considering she's the queen's handmaiden, but Jaufre's right.
Aniya and I head over to the tree. "Care to join me?" he questions teasingly.
I eye the tree branches, wondering if they'll be able to hold all of us. Finally, I reach up and catch onto one, starting to pull myself up. Aniya carefully follows, and I find myself fearful for her safety. I'm not sure if she can really manage to make it up there. She does have a knack for being clumsy, after all.
"You're doing great," Jaufre informs us as I make it to a branch right below him. He continues calling down instructions to us as we slowly make our way up.
"You know Jar Jar will be back any moment while you're still up there, right?" Padme demands.
"We'll hear him!" I insist.
"And then we'll come down," Aniya grins. I pull myself up a few more feet before settling on the same large branch Jaufre is sitting on. Aniya swings onto one right below and looks up.
"How high up can we go?" I wonder, staring up at the treetops.
"All the way to the top if there's enough to grip on and if the branches are large enough," answers Jaufre, ignoring Padme's disapproving gaze. "Really, you should come join us!" he teases. "It's fun!"
"When the planet is not on the verge of destruction, I may consider it," she replies curtly, ignoring the fake pout I give her.
Aniya reaches up to the next branch to continue climbing, but suddenly slips and with a startled yelp, falls the six feet back to the forest floor. Padme lunges forwards to catch her but loses her balance also, and they both fall to the ground.
"Aniya!" I exclaim, swinging off the branch and scrambling down the tree as quickly as I can. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Aniya groans, her face slightly red from embarrassment.
"Don't try to go down too fast!" warns Jaufre as I drop to the ground and hurry over to my sister.
"I did warn you this wasn't a good idea right now," Padme grumbles as she stands, helping up Aniya. Jaufre joins us back on the ground. "Now come on, we better get back to the others."
Finally, I hear splashing around, and the Gungan pops out of the water, walking over to the Jedi. "Dare-sa nobody dare. All gone. Some kinda fight, I tink," Jar Jar reports. That's more than a little concerning.
"Do you think they have been taken to camps?" Obi-Wan asks.
"More likely they were wiped out," decides Captain Panaka.
"No, mesa no tink so," argues Jar Jar, "Gungan hidden. When in trouble go to sacred place." Sacred place? I never would have thought Gungans to be a religious species. Apparently, they are, at least this group. "Mackineeks no find them dare," Jar Jar continues.
"Do you know where they are?" questions Qui-Gon. It's the first time he's spoken in a while.
"Mesa show you! Come on," urges Jar Jar in answer, before setting off at a rapid pace through the forest. The rest of us follow behind. A while later, we come to a stop near another swamp.
"Dissen it," he declares before letting out a strange, loud noise. Suddenly, a bunch of Gungans appear out of what seems like nowhere, riding strange creatures. They all look similar to Jar Jar, except they're different shades of similar colors. "Heyo-dalee, Captain Tarpals," Jar Jar calls cheerfully.
"Binks! Noah gain!" groans the other Gungan, apparently not at all happy to see his fellow.
"We comen to see da boss," Jar Jar tells him.
Tarpals rolls his eyes. "Ouch time, Binks," he warns, "Ouch time for all-n youse." He leads us further into the trees, with Jar Jar and Queen Amidala in the front, then the Jedi, and finally Aniya and I few steps behind. The growth in the woods becomes sparser, and we pause near a strange structure which is sticking out of the water. Several more Gungans stride towards us.
"Hello Boss Nass," greets Jar Jar as our procession approaches.
"Jar Jar, yousa payen dis time. Who's da uss-en others?" demands the tall, fat one who must be the leader. I don't get it. Why are the Gungans so upset that Jar Jar is here? He seems perfectly likeable to me. Unless, his clumsiness somehow got him in trouble.
Queen Amidala steps forwards. "I am Queen Amidala of the Naboo. I come before you in peace," she speaks.
"Naboo biggen. Yousa bringen da Mackineeks… Dya busten uss-en omm. Yousa all bombad. Yousa all die'n, mesa tink," replies Boss Nass. Maybe I should be nervous about how he's acting, but I'm not. Most of the others seem worried though, with the exception of Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. They both appear the perfect picture of calm, as usual.
"We wish to form an alliance," begins Queen Amidala, but is suddenly cut off when Padme steps forwards.
"Your Honor," she begins. I stare at her in confusion. Wait, what? What's going on? Why is she talking to him? Shouldn't the queen be doing that?
"Whosa dis?" demands the Gungan leader, obviously equally confused.
"I am Queen Amidala," Padme declares, before motioning to the person in the queen's dress, "This is my decoy, my protection, my loyal bodyguard."
Aniya gasps quietly beside me, and I gape in shock. This makes so much sense, yet it makes no sense at all. Padme is the queen? So that's where she's been all this time on Coruscant! But… how could she be the queen? Aniya and I are friends with the queen?! I catch sight of Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan exchanging a knowing look behind us. I'm guessing they've already suspected the truth, much unlike me and Aniya. Considering they're Jedi, it's not surprising they were able to figure out.
"I am sorry for my deception, but under the circumstances it has become necessary to protect myself," Padme explains. "Although we do not always agree, Your Honor, our two great societies have always lived in peace… until now. The Trade Federation has destroyed all that we have worked so hard to build. You are in hiding, my people are in camps. If we do not act quickly, all will be lost forever… I ask you to help us… No, I beg you to help us." She lowers herself to her knees. "We are your humble servants. Our fate is in your hands."
Slowly, everyone else starts kneeling as well. Finally, Aniya and I join them. Everything is completely still for a long moment until the leader of the Gungans begins to laugh, all former anger gone. "Yousa no tinken yousa greater den da Gungans. Mesa like dis. Maybe wesa bein friends," he decides, much happier now. Maybe even somewhat amused.
Padme smiles, obviously relieved. Naboo may have finally gotten the help it really needed. As for me, though, I'm still feeling completely stunned. I had no idea that Aniya and I are friends with the queen. Then again, when we first met her, I did have the feeling there was a lot more to her than met the eye. This, though, is forcing me to look at her from a whole new perspective. Naboo is very fortunate to have a queen like her. She's so caring, even for me and my twin when she hardly even knew us.
Padme finally rises to her feet and everyone else follows her lead.
"Seriously. I never would have expected that from Padme," Aniya whispers to me, still looking shocked.
"It explains why she wasn't there when we want to say goodbye to her," I realize, "Because we were actually talking to her."
With the meeting over, everyone begins to mill about. Boss Nass, Jar Jar, Padme, Jaufre, Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, and several others from both sides begin speaking with each other, no doubt coming up with a plan for their counterattack on the droid armies. One of the Gungans is soon sent to the top of their temple to keep watch. We're waiting for a signal which will begin the start of the battle. Excitement mixed with dread runs through me.
My mind wanders back to Aniya's nightmare despite the situation. We haven't seen the creature yet. Yet. We haven't even gone to Theed, the capital, though. Most likely that's where he is, waiting for our arrival.
Now is when I really wish that we could be trained, more so than just knowing how to meditate. I know I have some abilities in sensing the future, but they aren't that attuned. If we were, I know I'd be able to tell if that creature was going to attack us. More than anything, I want to make sure that Qui-Gon won't get hurt or killed. There's no way that can't happen. I may hardly know him, but I already look up to him a lot. In a way, he almost feels like the father figure we never had.
"Honestly," Aniya comments as we stand in silence among the trees, waiting for the call from the Gungan atop the Temple, "I'm not certain if we should be excited or worried."
I shrug. "Qui-Gon told us to be mindful right before we left Coruscant," I offer, "So at least we better keep watch in case we see the being."
"I just hope they'll remember to be careful," mumbles Aniya. "I have no idea where the two of us were in my dream, but all I know is that we must not have been nearby."
"Even though he told us to stay close to him?" I object. She shrugs, and we wait in silence for a while before a sudden thought clicks in my head. "Well maybe he told us to wait somewhere because he didn't want us to be in the middle of such a battle," I suggest.
"Maybe," she concedes, looking like she wishes I hadn't had that thought in the first place. Honestly, I do too. It sounds altogether too reasonable. "I hope not," she adds with a sigh. Obi-Wan promised they'd be careful, and I can only hope they will be. I hate being this helpless. I want to be able to help my new friends, but just like before, I'm powerless. There's nothing I can do for them, and I hate it.
My eyes turn to the Gungan on the top of their temple again, impatiently anticipating the call that will begin the action. Maybe I shouldn't, but I just want the battle to start, to be over with. Waiting is always the hard part. I hope everyone has finished planning and are fully prepared when the fight begins.
"Daza comen!" he calls suddenly, sending Aniya and I both flying into action.
"They're here!" Aniya and I both yell simultaneously as we run towards the group standing together, discussing the battle plan.
"Yousa doen grand. Jar Jar bringen da Naboo together," Boss Nass complements Jar Jar.
"Oh, no, no, no…" Jar Jar insists.
"So, wesa maken yousa Bombad General," decides Boss Nass, totally ignoring the other Gungan's protests.
"General?! Oh, no!" cries Jar Jar. His tongue flops out, and his eyes roll back as he falls to the ground in a faint. Surprisingly, no one seems to be particularly concerned. Maybe dramatic responses like that are commonplace for him.
Four speeders – containing the scouts and more allies – pull up. "What is the situation?" Padme inquires as people start piling out. Since the beginning of the alliance, she's openly taken up her role of being the queen. And she is doing a really good job at it.
"Almost everyone is in camps," reports Captain Panaka. "A few hundred police and guards have formed an underground movement. I brought as many of the leaders as I could. The Federation Army's also much larger than we thought, and much stronger. Your Highness, this is a battle I do not think we can win." Aniya and I exchange tense glances.
"The battle is a diversion," corrects Padme. "The Gungans must draw the Droid Army away from the cities. We can enter the city using the secret passages on the waterfall side. Once we get to the main entrance, Captain Panaka will create a diversion, so that we can enter the palace and capture the Viceroy. Without the Viceroy, they will be lost and confused. What do you think, Master Jedi?"
"The Viceroy will be well guarded," points out Qui-Gon.
"The difficulty is getting into the throne room. Once we're inside, we shouldn't have a problem," Captain Panaka tells them.
"There is a possibility with this diversion that many Gungans will be killed," warns Qui-Gon.
"Wesa ready to do are-sa part," Boss Nass assures everyone.
Jar Jar, who has finally woken up, rises to his feet looking like he's about to panic. I do hope he doesn't faint in the battlefield. That would not be very motivating for his soldiers.
"We have a plan which should immobilize the Droid Army. We will send what pilots we have to knock out the Droid control ship which is orbiting the planet. If we can get past their ray shields, we can sever communication, and their droids will be helpless," Padme informs.
"A well-conceived plan. However, there's great risk. The weapons on your fighters may not penetrate the shields on the control ship," Qui-Gon cautions.
"And there's an even bigger danger," points out Obi-Wan, finally speaking up for the first time. "If the Viceroy escapes, Your Highness, he will return with another droid army.
"That is why we must not fail to get to the Viceroy. Everything depends on it," agrees Padme. I can hardly believe it. We're about to help in a war that will determine the fate of not just ourselves, but an entire planet.