***1***
Anakin lunged to shield Padme from attack. Wishing he could afford to draw his lightsaber, he instead activated a portable ray shield that he'd modified from Mandalorian gear.
"Dooku," Padme shouted from behind him, "you are inviting a war!"
"Yes, with pleasure," Dooku said with a cold smile.
A blaster fired behind them. Anakin half-turned as he tried to deflect the bolt. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the Mandalorian bounty hunter Jango Fett raise his blaster. Time slowed. Fett fired. Anakin reached for the Force, but it wasn't enough. Anakin wasn't enough. Dooku intervened. The bolt penetrated the barrier he built in the Force. The shot clipped Padme across the left side of her neck and she started to go down.
"Nooo!" Anakin screamed as he reached for her. The battle droids surrounding them exploded with the force of his anger and fear. Fett dropped on to his knees, gasping.
Anakin managed to catch Padme before she could hit the ground and cradled her in his arms. She was lighter than his mother had been. He curled around her and tried not to cry. The smell of charred meat was overwhelming.
"Ani," Padme's lips moved without sound. Her labored breath gurgled through the ruin of her throat. Her life force was fading. She reached for him, but her hand fell before she could touch his face. Her lips moved as she tried to say something more, but he could not make it out.
No. No. No. He could not live with this. He could not lose her. Not the same way he had lost his mother.
"Skywalker."
Anakin's head snapped up.
Dooku smiled cooly. "You can drop your pathetic disguise." His red lightsaber burst into life.
Shaking with rage, Anakin set Padme down with all the gentleness he could muster and stepped over her. He pulled his lightsaber from where it was tucked in the small of his back and ignited it with one smooth motion. The blade was as red as his anger.
He was on Dooku in a heartbeat with a blow that should have taken the man's head off. Dooku parried and struck back. He was a better swordsman, more precise, but Anakin had strength, speed, and anger. He caught Dooku's blade and a bind and bore down.
"Ah, no longer white, I see," Dooku said, nodding towards Anakin's blade, as calmly as if he were discussing the weather and not fighting for his life. "Finally, your lightsaber has the right color." He disengaged his saber with a quick yielding parry and shoved Anakin back with the Force. "Not that it will help you," he added and blasted him with lightning.
Big mistake. Anakin caught the energy with his blade and let it build. This was the moment he'd been waiting for. He sent his own blast of lighting down the length of his blade. The two bolts clashed with a deafening sound.
Their energy danced, intertwined, and amplified. Dooku's eyes widened. Anakin Force pushed Dooku, creating more distance between them. Dooku lifted his blade, but Anakin was faster. He thrust his lightsaber upward, blasting the lightning into the ceiling. It struck with a deafening boom which blew up half of the hangar. Debris rained down between them and Anakin used the distraction to scoop up Padme and run for the ship.
She was still breathing, barely, but still alive. Every second was critical, but he still had time. He still had a chance. He could still save her.
***2***
A harsh wind blew across the desert of Geonosis as Obi-Wan and Palis landed. There was a reason the native Geonosians lived in their underground hives. It didn't take the Jedi long to realize they had lost track of the Fett. Palis suggested they sneak around to collect some intel.
In their short-lived trip, they discovered a droid factory, manufacturing battle droids at their full capacity. Then they were surrounded by a group of battle droids led by Fett.
Their lightsabers were taken away when they were brought to an interrogation room. They were locked behind a ray shield and held under charges of espionage. To their surprise, the CIS leader Count Dooku wanted to have a "conversation" with them. Despite Palis' protest, they were still being held in the ray shields when Dooku told the tale of his days after leaving the Order.
It was not much of a conversation, more a Dooku's monologue. He delivered a passionate speech on why the Republic was beyond hope. Any attempt to reform it from within would be in vain. The corruption ran deep. The only way to end the corruption was to starve the monstrous bureaucracy to death by every world leaving and joining CIS. Lastly, he invited them to leave the Jedi order to follow him since they were his lineage in the way of the Force through Qui-Gon.
Palis called Dooku a mad man and rejected that she had anything to do with Dooku's lineage. That stung. Obi-Wan knew he had never quite replaced her old master, but he'd thought they had had something.
"Who is madder?" asked Dooku. "In the Republic, hundreds of senators are under the influence of a Sith Lord named Darth Sidious."
Obi-Wan was shocked by this statement, but obviously, it was a lie. He collected himself and refuted Dooku calmly. "Your Majesty, I find your claims unbelievable. If a Sith has such influence, the Jedi Order would know already."
Dooku didn't say anything else but left the room abruptly. A few minutes later, Obi-Wan felt a surge of darkness in the Force. Then a thunderous sound hit his eardrum. He and Palis looked at each other with horror.
Soon Dooku returned. His luxurious cape was stained with dust, his face had a few cuts and was bleeding, yet he laughed like a mad man.
"Count, what happened to your fancy clothes?" Palis taunted.
"Senator Amidala of Naboo disguised herself as an ambassador for the Republic. She brought the Chancellor's brat here to assassinate me. Skywalker used a powerful explosive. Of course, it is just a feeble antic against my power," he declared triumphantly. "Their plot has been foiled. An assassination attempt on the head of a sovereign state is an act of war."
"You! You used the Dark Side of the Force. You are a Sith, aren't you?" Palis hissed.
"Young one, you are insightful. I used the newly learned power to build the alliance, to restore security and justice. The Jedi are limited by their dogmatic ideology. They have become passive, stagnant, as rotten as the rest of the system." He extended a hand. "Would you reconsider my invitation? "
"No. I will never join you," Palis spat.
"So be it." Dooku hurled a bolt of lightning. It struck her full in the chest and sent her writhing on the ground. There truly was no hope for the man. He was indeed a Sith.
"Count, stop it," Obi-Wan pled. "This is quite an important decision to make. Let us not rush things. I will talk sense into my apprentice."
The force of Dooku's blast had knocked Palis' red hair free of her ponytail. It hung in disarray across her shoulders as she hauled herself up from the floor. Her expression was haunted.
"I would like to know where you learned the power. Did you learn from the Zabrak Sith?" Obi-Wan asked curiously.
"You will know everything after you join me," Dooku said with a sneer.
"How about you remove the ray shield? It is rather uncomfortable. We can sit down to have a more in-depth conversation," Obi-Wan suggested.
"I am not a fool, young Jedi. I found your lack of sincerity disgusting. Guard, take them out!" Dooku dropped his mask of civility. "Time for the execution. Today we use Jedi blood to write a new chapter for the Confederacy!"
They were put in binders and escorted out by a squad of Geonosians.
"You scared me. I would rather die than join him," Palis whispered to him.
"Then your wishes will be fulfilled in no time." Obi-wan managed a smile.
***3***
Anakin ignited the engine and immediately set the ship to autopilot. Padme's astromech droid R2 rolled into the cockpit. "To Coruscant," Anakin shouted to the droid.
He laid Padme on her bed, tearing frantically at her dress. Her lips were purple and he couldn't feel her heart. He could feel her signature in the Force, but it was already going faint.
Anakin closed his eyes as he sunk into the Force. He added his strength to hers, blending their signatures in the Force. Healing was a delicate business, but he didn't have time for that. He poured energy into her body, willing her heart to beat and her cells to heal. Still, she remained cold and still.
He stared at her still form. She looked so much like his mother. Memory mixed with reality and, for a dizzying moment, it was as though he had fallen back in time. He had not been powerful enough to save his mother. On that day, he had mustered all the power he had, but still death had claimed her. He could still feel her final shudder as she died in his arms.
He was different now. After her death, he had studied harder, learned so much more. Grief made him stronger. He pushed the image of his dead mother away. He was stronger now. Padme would live because he willed it.
According to his studies, a Force user could heal themselves by channeling the energy of the galaxy through themselves and their midichlorians. The problem was, Padme didn't have the midichlorians for it. Luckily, Anakin had plenty to spare.
He sliced his wrist and held the bleeding cut to the wound on Padme's neck. The laws of nature would not stand before his power. He guided his blood, his midichlorians into her until he felt faint. The wound on her neck began to close, yet still her heart would not beat. Why? What was he doing wrong?
Life Force! She didn't have much left. He could give her his.
Anakin pulled her up, cradling her head against his chest. Closing his eyes, he poured himself into her. His energy flowed at first, as though blocked by a dam, but all at once, it seemed to burst through. Exhaustion hit him like a tidal wave. Would he die if he poured his life into her? He didn't care.
Padme gasped in his arms. She lived! Anakin sighed with relief and let the darkness take him.
***4***
Padme was dreaming. She had to be dreaming. She walked alone through cold and mist. Her surroundings were strange, yet they felt intimately familiar.
A track appeared. She cautiously followed it. Voices reached out to her from the mist, calling her name.
The mist seemed to have no end. Even as the mist grew thicker, the voices became clearer. They were her, she realized, saying words she remembered.
"Mom, I was admitted to the Legislative Youth Program," her nine-year-old self said excitedly. "One day, I will run for the highest office on Naboo."
"As the Princess of Theed, I promise you the corruption inherited from the previous office will stop here," she promised the audience at her first campaign rally.
"Naboo is built by people of resilience. We will fight off the invasion, together with our Jedi protectors. We will survive and thrive!" she rallied her people during the Occupation.
"The Republic has its problems, but I choose to believe in it," she told Count Dooku. "We will have more good people to work in the Senate. Naboo is not leaving. I respectfully decline your invitation."
"You want peace and liberty. Supporting the Military Creation Act will cost you both," she railed against militarization in the Senate.
"As long as the Republic and CIS stay friendly, it could be a win-win situation. We will succeed. Let us have faith in it," she begged Dooku for peace.
"My fault… Sorry… I..." she whispered, barely audible. What had she meant? Who had she been speaking to? She could not remember.
She was tired and wanted to lay down. A river lay a few meters in front of her. There was no mist on the other side of the river. On the other side was a meadow dotted with white and yellow flowers, like the fields of her childhood on Naboo. The sunshine was bright, and the sky crystal clear. She was eager to go across the river, to leave this sad and cold misty place, to immerse herself in the eternal brightness.
"Stop, you cannot go here." A strong hand grabbed her small hand. "Don't go here. I do not allow it." A tall figure with a familiar voice held her, but she could not see his face.
They started to dance, holding hands. He leaned down until their foreheads touched. Together they spun and twirled. The mist, stream, and meadows all disappeared. They danced among the stars.
Now she could see his face. It was Anakin, but something was different. His eyes were golden, but still it was Anakin. She cupped his face and smiled. "I meant to tell you. I love you."
He smiled and they danced on and on. It seemed like they might dance forever, but suddenly Anakin was gone.
Padme woke up with a start. Her head and chest ached and her breath burned in her throat. It took every ounce of strength to open her eyes. She lay on her bed in her starship's quarters. The last thing she remembered, she had been yelling at Dooku.
She was only wearing her undershirt. Why? What had happened? Anakin was lying on the ground, fully clothed. His body trembled, and his eyebrows furrowed in pain.
"Master, I beg you," he mumbled as if in delirium. "Please do not sell my mother away. She is all that I have. I will work harder in the shop."
"Anakin!" She scrambled off the bed and shook his shoulder. "Wake up!"
He slowly opened his eyes. Blue eyes, not gold. He breathed rapidly. Sweat dripped down his forehead. He lay still for a long moment, blinking up at her.
"Padme, you are alright!" He lunged for her, bursting into tears. "You were shot! I gave you some bacta."
"I feel really sore and tired." She looked at him, concerned, "Are you okay? You had a nightmare. You were shouting."
Anakin's smile froze. "What did I say?"
"You begged someone not to sell your mother away," she answered cautiously.
"That is all of it?" he asked with slightly narrowed eyes.
She nodded. Anakin's face softened.
"Ani, about you and your mother. There is more than what you told me, right?" she tried to help him up but they ended up both falling on the ground.
"Well," Anakin said, laying back, "I told you that I grew up in extreme poverty. My mother was kidnapped, and gone. I was lucky. Then-Senator Palpatine was visiting Tatooine. He adopted me. Those were all true. " He played with her hands and looked down. "Except… I was a slave. Both my mother and I were slaves." He shook his head. "I cannot talk about it anymore. Don't tell anyone, and don't pity me."
It was like a knife to her heart. She wept.
"I said, don't pity me." He bit his lip.
"No. I didn't pity you. I loathe that I know so little about you. I am a failure." She made a half-hearted attempt to wipe away her tears. "I had a strange dream. In the dream, I think...I was dead. I heard myself speaking on different occasions—all political stuff, eloquent, assertive, and inspiring, but I do not have anything outside my political career. Nothing left for myself. I was so close to death." She hesitated. "I want you to know, Anakin, I love you."
The next moment, Anakin's lips were on hers. They kissed each other's cheeks, nose, and forehead.
"Can you stay here with me?" Padme asked. She gestured to the empty space on her bed.
Anakin took off his jacket. They wrapped themselves under blankets. She had a strong feeling that they were connected. They had bonded in a way she did not understand. Holding hands, they fell into a comfortable silence.
"I want to know you more," she whispered. "Does your name have any special meaning?"
"In Tatooinian, Anakin meant hope ." He cradled her in his arms.
***5***
Palis stared at the beast that was trying to bite her right hand off. She gently touched its presence in the Force. They clicked, then connected. She had a good feeling. She may survive this. If she survived, she wanted nothing to do with the war or the Sith Lord.
Under her guidance, the Acklay precisely sliced through her binders, freeing her from the pillar that she was tied to. She directed her beast to attack the Nexu was attacking Obi-Wan.
A massive wave of Battle droids marched towards them. Gunships roared overhead. She looked behind her back. Lightsabers of green and blue flashed amongst the mechanical hordes. Jedi had arrived, but not just the Jedi. Soldiers in shining white armor charged the droids—the Clone Army.
The battle didn't last long. More than a dozen Jedi lost their lives. They'd come here to rescue Obi-Wan and her. Both of them survived, though not unscathed. They would recover soon after a few days in the Hall of Healing.
She'd lost her lightsaber. It had been unique, light purple in color. Master Windu's had a much deeper color. Master Windu and Master Yoda tried to capture the Sith Lord Dooku. Unfortunately, he escaped. Maybe Obi-Wan should have fought him. After all, Sith was his specialty.
Now they sat in the Room of a Thousand Fountains, side by side.
"I think what Dooku said could be true. A Sith may be working inside the Republic... They could be allies or possibly rivals," She told Obi-Wan.
"The Sith always lie to sow doubt, to divide. It is their nature. You emphasize "thinking" too much. Force will guide us to find the truth." He looked into her eyes. "Palis, you are a very talented Jedi. I am very proud of you. Meditation is your weakness. You need to work on it, especially when the Dark Side is clouding our judgment."
"I don't feel Force has told me anything. I almost never have. To be a responsible Jedi, I do whatever I can," She responded sadly. "We just found out Dooku was a Sith a few days ago. He is leading thousands of star systems to fight against us. Did the Council know anything about it? "
"Yes and No. Council knew the Dark Side was strong in the CIS movement. They suspected a Sith played a hand in it, but they didn't think it was Dooku."
"He once was a Jedi Master," she said with disdain. "Now totally twisted and mad."
"You do have a point. The Council didn't know about Dooku. Possibly, a Sith could influence the Senate from afar. Thus it was under Council's radar." He pinched his nose bridge.
"Maybe they are working in the Senate? Maybe they are lobbyists? Powerful corporate interests?" She struggled to list all the options. "Just consider the possibility."
"I will inform the Council of your ideas," Obi-Wan said seriously.
"Obi-Wan, about another issue." She had been mulling over it since Geonosis and decided today was the day to bring it up. "I am thinking about leaving the Order. "
"What? You can't be serious about this! " He looked at her with a hurt expression. "What brings this up? Dooku's speech?"
"Of course not! I have nothing to do with that mad man!" She said sharply. "It was my own idea. I started to think about it ten years ago. Aren't we peacekeepers? Why are the Jedi serving as generals sent to the war? I thought we are completely against violence, except in extreme situations. Why are we leading the war when many people other than the Jedi are so eager to lead?"
"It is the Senate decision. The Jedi answers to the Senate." Obi-Wan sighed. "Also, we created the Clone Army after all. We have an obligation to end the atrocities committed by the Sith, a fallen Jedi."
"We can refuse it! We are an organization of Faith, not the Republic war department!" she exclaimed. "Remember what we just talked about? A Sith Lord influences hundreds of Senators. It is quite a voting bloc."
Obi-Wan offered no argument, so she kept on talking. "I snuck out of the Temple to watch the Military Academy joint graduation ceremony. Graduates from institutions all over the Galaxy gathered. They spoke passionately. All committed their life to the Republic. Anakin Skywalker spoke. A terse but powerful speech. He did not look well, not at all."
She recounted his message. "He talked about his training in Carida, then the mission to Geonosis. How Dooku's man attacked Padme unprovoked. He and his fellow officers would fight against any enemy until justice and orders are restored. Just think about it. He and Padme survived, facing a Sith Lord! Isn't it impressive? These military officers can do it!"
"It was more than that," Obi-Wan said. "I heard from the Chancellor directly. Anakin will take some time to rest, to regain his health before he heads to any battle." Obi-Wan stroked his beard. "Now, back to your idea of leaving. Honestly, I am disappointed. You can't walk away from your duty, run away from who you are. We all have sworn our allegiance to the Order, to the Republic."
"Why don't you get it?" She threw her hands in the air but quickly collected herself and spoke with a softer voice. "I am a misfit in the Order. You can't deny it! I am not strong in the way of the Force. I keep on using other methods to compensate, to look normal. Actually, I found myself more normal outside the Temple. People just treat me as another regular folk. See. I dyed my hair red. The Masters called it vanity. Why do they have to make such a big deal out of it?"
"I am sorry to hear that you feel that way." Obi-Wan looked at her sympathetically. "No one is a perfect fit in the Order. We all have struggles, but this is our family. We go through tough times together."
"Anyway, I don't want to be part of the war. Senate, Council, Will of Force... Which is which? How was the decision made? The logic was muddy. I am confused."
"If it is your final decision. I respect that, and I will miss you. Palis," Obi-Wan begged, "please put more thoughts into this. You can't turn back after you leave. There is a Sith Lord outside. He may be interested in you."
"I had enough of the Force. No motivation to learn anything new. I will think about what to do next." She smiled to herself. "The galaxy is big. I will contribute to the Republic in many other ways."
***6***
The war has started. The cadets' graduation was quite an event, like a ceremony for a new era—a grand demonstration of loyalty and patriotism.
It was interesting that the Chancellor's son was also a Skywalker. A funny coincidence. Out of curiosity, Rackeli looked in Senator Amidala's profile. She was on that Sentient Being Rights Committee, in which she played a minor role. Rackeli had sent out her "Concerned Parents" letter to her system's senator, waiting for a response. Probably it would take a long time. The war demanded everyone's attention. She was sure that a request of checking in on a Jedi youngling had the lowest priority.
But it was the top priority for Shas. The Jedi sent children to war with the adult teachers, claiming it was part of the training. Shas were appalled by this. Child soldiers, they called it. Their baby didn't sign up for this. In their eyes, it was textbook child abuse.
Rackeli found she couldn't disagree with them.
What to do next? She decided to message Skywalker. He seemed to know the way the Senate works.
A week later, Skywalker replied.
"The staff from the Committee will reply to you. AS."
She was astounded by his initials. It could be a coincidence, but maybe she was talking to Palpatine's son.
"Are you Anakin Skywalker?" She sent out the message after hesitation.
A few moments later. The comm-link beeped.
"Yes."