Into the Unknown

The Selonia came out of hyperspace above an azure blue planet. Maul looked down at the swirling grey-blue clouds below. This was his home, or at least the closest thing he had to a home, though it had been decades since he'd been here.

"The levels of silicate in the atmosphere are almost off the charts," Vigdis said, checking a reading on her console. "Are you sure this place is safe?" Maul turned his yellow eyes on her. Of course it wasn't safe. That was the whole point.

"It will suffice for our purposes," he said simply. Vigdis did not look reassured, but kept her mouth shut. Maul gave coordinates to the pilot. "Keep shields at maximum strength," Maul ordered. "If there is a storm, we will need them."

The ship descended slowly, cautiously, into the atmosphere. They were lucky, the clouds were thin and quiet at the moment. As they approached the glittering surface of the planet, Maul could see the gently sloping dome of the entrance to the underground training facility where he had been raised. "There," he said, pointing it out to the pilot. They moved in closer and Maul went to the comm, waiting to receive the security signal from below. When it came through, he punched in the clearance code and waited.

For a moment Maul feared the facility below was too old and too long out of use to still function, but then the two halves of the dome began to slide apart, revealing a sunken hangar bay. He directed the pilot to land the ship, and when they had descended, the hangar doors above them closed back up, sealing them in. Beside him, Vigdis breathed a sigh of relief. Maul smiled. It would be all but impossible for the Republic to find them here. But his master would come. Yes, he was sure of it.

Padme arrived back at her apartment in the small hours of the morning. She pulled off the outer layers of a her Senatorial garb and collapsed on her bed, not even bothering to crawl beneath the covers. She could not remember when she'd last been so exhausted. She'd just started to drift off when she heard a scuffling outside her apartment door.

Instantly alert, she pushed herself upright and pulled open the drawer of her side table, retrieving a small blaster. She heard the sound again. She moved off the bed and stood beside the bedroom doorway so that she could just see the front door. She heard the sound from outside again and her whole body went tense with adrenaline. The door hissed open as she leveled the blaster at it.

"Don't move," she ordered, stepping out just far enough to let the intruder see she was armed. The person's hands went up, but she couldn't see their face in the shadow beneath the brimmed cap.

"Padme, it's me," a familiar voice said. Relief flooded over her as she lowered her blaster and ran to him.

"Anakin!" She embraced him, throwing her arms around him. He was once again wearing the cap and poncho he'd used during their previous tryst. "You scared me half to death," she chided him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you. I thought you'd be asleep," he said, pulling off his cap. "I still had this." He waved the code cylinder she'd given him in his other hand.

"Shouldn't you be at the Temple?" she asked pulling halfway back from their embrace so she could see his face, but still keeping him in her arms.

"I had to see you." His face was drawn. He looked as tired as she felt. "You are the only person I want to be with right now." She extracted herself from his arms and he pulled of his poncho while she deposited the blaster on a nearby table. She sat on the sofa and he joined her. They traded stories, filling in the blanks for each other on the events of the preceding day.

"It feels like a century since we sat on the rooftop," she said when they'd both finished their tales. She'd carefully omitted Obi-Wan's discovery of her secret from her retelling. She'd been so close to revealing everything to Anakin before the attack, but so much had changed. She needed to reassess. "Yesterday we were celebrating the end of the war. Now it feels like we're starting over."

"I know," he said quietly. She waited for him to say more. She assumed he'd want to talk about it, but he remained quiet.

"They're going to send you after Maul," she said, finally breaking the silence by giving voice to her worst fear, "aren't they?" He took his time before he responded to her question.

"Obi-Wan was still in discussion with the Council when I left," he said slowly, not meeting her eyes, "but yes, I think they will." He looked down into his lap for a long moment before finally bringing his gaze up to meet hers. "It doesn't change anything." His tone was determined, but Padme knew better than to believe him.

"Doesn't it?" she asked softly. When he didn't answer right away, she stood up and went to the window. She felt tears sting at the corners of her eyes, but she held them back. He got up and followed her to the window. She let him wrap his arms around her, but didn't return the embrace.

"I will leave the Jedi Order," he insisted as he held her.

"But not yet," she qualified, pulling back from him slightly. He didn't contradict her.

"It wouldn't be right to leave now," he said carefully. "The Order is in crisis. I have a duty to them to stay until it's done. And Obi-Wan will need me."

"You never used to put much store in duty," she said quietly, remembering how they used to argue about her obligations to her homeworld. She knew there was more he wasn't saying. The pursuit of Maul was personal for Anakin.

"Much has changed," he said. Now she could hear the subtle undercurrent of anger in his voice. He started out the window for a moment before looking back down at her. His jaw was set. "I have to see this through," he said firmly.

"I know." He wouldn't say the words, but Padme understood well enough. Anakin was determined to have his revenge. She leaned back into him, turning her face once more to the window, where she let her eyes wander over the shimmering city lights. Anakin's comlink began to go off.

"It's Obi-Wan," he said, holding his arm up to check the message. "I'm supposed to meet him at the docks at oh-seven-thirty." Anakin looked down at her, an apology written on his face. "I thought we'd have more time."

"Might as well try to get a few hours of sleep then," she said flatly, trying to get the welling emotion she felt out of her voice. She headed back into her bedroom, her mind whirling as she sat on the edge of the bed. She knew how close she was to losing him. The search for Maul could take years, or, worse, it could take Anakin's life.

"You're upset," Anakin said, now leaning in the bedroom doorway.

"I don't want to talk about it," she said, letting her frustration show a bit, but she quickly softened her tone. "Nothing ever changes, does it?" she asked quietly. "There's always something keeping us apart." She looked up at him. "Maybe there always will be."

"Not for tonight" he said, drawing close to her. "Tonight, I belong only to you."

He leaned down and kissed her. Part of her did not want to give in, but stronger than that was the desire to hold onto him for as long as she could. She kissed him back and pulled him down onto the bed. There was a flurry of discarded clothes and tangled bed sheets, and then they melted into each other. Unlike their passionate reunion the night before, they took their time now, both reluctant to let it be over too soon.

Afterward, they pulled the covers up around them and lay in silence. Padme wrapped her arms around Anakin, her head resting on his bare chest. Anakin absentmindedly ran his fingers through Padme's curls. After awhile, she felt his breathing grow slow and steady as he drifted off. The gentle rise and fall of his chest should have lulled her to sleep, but sleep would not come.

She tried to reassure herself with the knowledge that at least Anakin would not be seeking Darth Maul alone, that Obi-Wan would keep him safe, but her doubt and fear lingered. She could already feel Anakin slipping away as the future that had seemed so bright the day before began to fade. When the first hint of the rosy dawn crept over the skyline, Padme still lay awake, staring out the window, dreading what the day would bring.

Darth Maul stepped down from the Selonia and into the hangar. It had been many years since he, or anyone else, had set foot in this place. A thick layer of dust covered the hangar floor, and it puffed up as his feet disturbed it. A motion-activated light feebly flickered to life, washing the hangar in half-light. This was the main hangar of the facility and it was of considerable size, large enough to hold the Selonia as well as a few dozen single-man fighters and one or two larger vessels.

"Where are we?" Vigdis asked, stepping out beside him.

"This is where I was trained in the ways of the Force," Maul said, walking forward toward a corridor ahead. He unclipped his lightsaber from his belt and ignited half of it to give them light.

"Like a Jedi Temple?" she asked.

"No," Maul said sharply, staring her down, "not like a Jedi Temple." Vigdis held her hands up in apology. A rattling noise came from outside, growing louder each moment. They both looked up. The entire facility was shaking from the forceful vibrations.

"What the hell is that?"

"A silicate storm," Maul said. "They are frequent and fierce on this world."

"Will the hangar doors hold?" Vigdis asked nervously.

"They will hold," Maul assured her. "Organize our troops. There is a mess hall down this corridor," Maul gestured to the right, "and a medical facility. They were not designed to hold this many people, so we must move in shifts."

"What about sleeping quarters?"

"Everyone must sleep on the Selonia." Maul said. He did not want his troops running loose in this place. "There is a security center through there," Maul pointed to the left. "Set up a team there and seal off the rest of the facility. No one is to go beyond this wing."

"Yes, sir." Vigdis moved off to carry out his orders. Maul breathed in the stale, recycled air, as hundreds of memories flooded his brain. Here he had become a Lord of the Sith. It was only right then that this place should provide him with a new beginning. He would rebuild his forces, he would reunite with his master, and together they would be the undoing of the Republic.

"What?" Anakin sputtered, staring at his master in disbelief as they stood on the docks just after dawn. "That's impossible."

"It is the will of the Council," Obi-Wan said. He'd been dreading breaking the news to Anakin that he would not be sent to look for Darth Maul. It was going poorly, as Obi-Wan had anticipated.

"You need me on this mission," Anakin insisted.

"The Council's decision is final," Obi-Wan said firmly, though in his heart he wondered if Anakin was right. "You will not join the search for Maul."

"This is unacceptable!" Anakin shouted, his voice echoing across the docks. The morning sun was in full force now, bathing the massive capital ships of the Republic in yellow light. All around them clone troopers and droids moved, bringing supplies on to the ships. Obi-Wan had asked Anakin to meet him here while they waiting on the completion of preparations. He had hoped to have a serious talk with his apprentice about Anakin's future. Instead they were careening toward another argument.

"The Council feels the security assignment on Alderaan is more suitable," Obi-Wan said, though it was not lost on him that the Council, in their ignorance, was sending Anakin away from one asteroid field and into another. It was clear to him that the young man still had no idea that Padme was pregnant. He fervently hoped that she would tell him soon and that the news would be enough to stop Anakin doing anything foolish regarding Darth Maul.

"More suitable?" Anakin scoffed angrily. "You mean they don't trust me."

"They recognize it would be difficult for you to put aside your personal feelings," Obi-Wan said shortly. Though he'd stood up for Anakin in the Council meeting, he was beginning to feel they had made the right choice. His apprentice was certainly not controlling his emotions at present.

"My personal feelings have nothing to do with it!" Anakin seethed. He was nearly shouting again. "Darth Maul is a murderer and a criminal. He deserves to die."

"His fate does not lie in your hands," Obi-Wan said sharply. "We live in a Republic. Maul must be tried for his crimes," Obi-Wan reminded Anakin. He took a deep breath, trying to bring his own frustration under control. "Besides, I thought you'd be pleased with your mission to Alderaan." Anakin gave his master a nervous glance, but his face quickly hardened once more into a scowl.

"I have no idea why the Council thinks it takes three Jedi to escort a delegation home," Anakin said, pivoting away from the crux of Obi-Wan's comment. Obi-Wan now felt more certain than ever that Anakin remained in the dark about his impending fatherhood. "It's absurd."

"The Council is concerned that the former Rogue leadership may be a target of the renewed Separatist forces," Obi-Wan explained, not for the first time. "Maul and his followers could be anywhere. Until we get a lead on him we must be cautious." Anakin continued to glower. Obi-Wan put a hand on the young man's shoulder. "You've been at the forefront of this war for a long time now. Take the rest. You've earned it. Everything will be clearer when your mind is at peace."

"This is about Ryloth isn't it?" Anakin asked accusingly. "I'm being punished."

"Do you think you deserve to be punished for that, Anakin?" Obi-Wan asked. Anakin huffed and turned away, but Obi-Wan could tell his apprentice hovering between guilt and anger. "Tell me," Obi-Wan said, sensing an opportunity, "what was in your mind when you were trapped in the cavern on Ryloth?" Anakin took his time before answering.

"I was afraid," he admitted at last, still not looking at Obi-Wan.

"Your fear made you powerful," Obi-Wan explained, "but the power you felt in that moment, strong though it was, is a false promise."

"But it saved me!" Anakin insisted, turning around quickly. "I would have died in that cave if I'd only done as you taught me." Obi-Wan absorbed the implication of his own failure in Anakin's words and fought the urge to retort. He had to remain calm.

"The power of the dark side is quick and easy to summon, for it relies on our basest instincts," Obi-Wan told his apprentice. "It is much harder to rise above our nature and harness the power of the light, but that is the path of a Jedi."

"Have you considered that it might be a path to nowhere?" Anakin said sourly.

"Of course." Obi-Wan nodded. "Most Jedi question their place in the Order at some point. Even me," Obi-Wan said softly, smiling.

"Perhaps the Jedi are just afraid of their own power," Anakin said, and Obi-Wan detected something new in his voice, something unfamiliar and menacing. Obi-Wan frowned slightly, unnerved by the change in Anakin's tone.

"Perhaps we are," Obi-Wan said, circumspect, trying to ignore the warning in his heart. "Perhaps we should be."

"How can you say that, when someone like Maul can wreak havoc on the Republic and walk free?" Anakin demanded. "Don't we have a responsibility to use our power to bring him to justice?"

"Is it justice you want?" Obi-Wan asked pointedly, "or revenge?"

"Does it really matter?" Anakin asked, exasperated.

"Yes," Obi-Wan said with finality, "it does."

"I'm not so sure," Anakin muttered. Before Obi-Wan could respond, a clone trooper came up to them, saluting them both.

"Sir, we'll be departing in a few minutes," he said, addressing Obi-Wan.

"Yes, thank you," Obi-Wan said, and the clone trooper moved off. Obi-Wan started toward the ship and Anakin followed. "Anakin, I know this isn't easy. When my first master was killed on Mandalore I felt much as you do now," he confessed. "But with the help of Master Yoda I realized the truth."

"What truth?" Anakin asked as Obi-Wan started up the ramp. He stopped and looked back at his apprentice. He could feel Anakin's anger rippling through the Force.

"Hate will make you powerful," Obi-Wan said, "but it will also destroy you." Anakin didn't say anything in response. Obi-Wan could still see the fire of anger burning in Anakin's eyes, but the last of the troopers were hurrying up the gangway now and he knew his time was up. Obi-Wan gave his apprentice a salute, and boarded the Resolute, leaving Anakin behind. He could only hope Anakin would heed his words.

Padme slept for a few fitful hours after Anakin departed in the morning, but when she woke she did not feel rested. As they'd said their goodbyes, she'd considered telling him about the twins in in a gambit to convince him not to leave, but ultimately held back. She didn't like the idea of trying to guilt him into staying. Besides, Anakin was under enough pressure already, she was determined not to add to it. At least, not before she had to.

Alone in her apartment she busied herself with preparing for her departure, scheduled for the evening. She would be going home, at long last, though she wished the circumstances were not so grim. She would accompany Breha and the other leaders and dignitaries of Alderaan as they returned to their homeworld to bury their queen. Then, in a few weeks, Breha would formally be crowned.

When evening came, she locked up her apartment and made her way to the private hangar where the royal yacht was housed. She greeted Breha, who was significantly improved but temporarily confined to repulsorlift chair, as well as Bail, and an assortment of other Alderaanians returning with them.

"You look like hell," Breha whispered, pulling Padme aside after the formal pleasantries. "Is everything alright?"

"I'm fine," Padme lied insistently. "I just didn't sleep very well." That much was true. "And you're one to talk," she said, gesturing to Breha, who was still covered in the scars and bruises of the Senate attack. Breha rolled her eyes, but before she could get off a retort, Bail interrupted them.

"Looks like our security has arrived," he said, pointing behind them. Padme turned and saw three Jedi making their way toward the yacht. Two were women she didn't recognize, but the third was a tall, broad-shouldered man with fair, close-cropped hair. Even before he turned his face toward her she knew it was Anakin.

For a few, heart-stopping moments she thought he'd come back for her. She imagined him running up to her, telling her he'd left the Jedi Order, that they were free to begin a new life together, but then she saw his face. She took in his clenched jaw and his furrowed brow and in an instant her fantasy evaporated. He caught her eye for just a moment, but quickly looked away. Whatever was going on, he clearly wasn't happy about it.

"Your majesty." The older of the two other Jedi bowed deeply before Breha. "I am General Luminara Unduli, and this is my apprentice, Commander Barriss Offee." The younger woman also bowed. "And I believe you already know Commander Skywalker?" Anakin bowed as well, and kept his eyes down.

"Of course," Breha said, nodding to Anakin. "It is a pleasure to meet you," she said to the other two Jedi. "This is quite the escort."

"The Separatists harbor a special hatred for those who fought against them on Alderaan," Master Unduli said. Padme kept trying to make eye contact with Anakin, but he continued to avoid looking directly at her.

"Yes," Breha agreed somberly, "I'm afraid you are only too right about that. We will be glad of your presence as we return home in these troubled times." The three Jedi bowed again and moved off, Anakin still doggedly avoiding any of Padme's glances as the trio boarded the ship. Breha looked up a Padme, her eyebrows raised in curiosity, but Padme gave her a subtle shrug. She had no idea what Anakin was doing here, though she was desperate to find out.

The other milling passengers started to board the ship as well, and soon Padme made her way onto the yacht with Breha and Bail. She excused herself from the queen and went to her stateroom, but she couldn't relax. Something was wrong with Anakin. She had to see him. As the ship launched from the dock and began ascending through Coruscant's atmosphere, she got up and made her way to the bridge. It wasn't far from her room, and when she got there she saw him in a huddle with the other Jedi.

"Commander Skywalker," she called to him from the edge of the bridge, beckoning for him to join her, "a moment, please." She knew it was somewhat brazen, but she could always invent some pretext later, fabricate a security concern to justify their rendezvous, whatever it took; she just needed to know why he was here. She did note, with some concern, the raised eyebrows of Master Unduli as Anakin walked toward her.

"What's going on?" she asked quietly, searching his face. Anakin glanced back over his shoulder at the other Jedi.

"Let's walk," he said, clearly anxious to be out of earshot of his fellow Jedi. She nodded, and they started down the corridor back toward her room. "The Council won't allow me to join the search for Darth Maul," Anakin announced as they walked. "They don't trust me." There were storm clouds in his voice.

"Maybe it's for the best," she said cautiously. She knew he was angry, but she only felt relief.

"How can you say that?" he demanded caustically. Her relief began to quickly dissipate. "You know what he's done. He can't be allowed to escape!" He sounded manic.

"Let's talk about this somewhere more private," she said as several people turned their heads at Anakin's outburst. This was not a conversation she wanted to have in public. They walked the short distance to her stateroom and she opened the door, gesturing Anakin inside. "The other Jedi will find Darth Maul," she said reassuringly, following him into the room and closing the door behind her.

"They won't," he insisted, "they can't." He turned away, pacing halfway down the room, then coming back. There was a mad glint in his eyes she'd never seen before. "I have to go after him myself."

"You don't know where he is either," she reminded him. He was making her very nervous now. "You're starting to sound obsessed."

"I have to find him," he said again, as though proving her point. "I will find him. I want to see the light go out of his eyes." The cold vitriol in his voice as he said sent a chill down her spine.

"Now we come to it," she said, "you wouldn't admit it yesterday, but this isn't really about any obligation you feel to the Jedi, or to Obi-Wan, is it?" she asked accusingly. "This is about revenge."

"And why shouldn't I have revenge?" Anakin snarled. Padme took a small step back. She'd never seen him like this. "Why shouldn't Maul pay with his life?"

"Revenge won't bring your mother back," she reminded him, as gently as she could, "it won't change anything." Anakin glowered at her, then began pacing again.

"I can't undo what happened," he said, continuing to walk back and forth, "but I can finish what she started," he said, more to himself than her. "Maul is the only thing standing between the Republic and total victory. His death could end the war. I could end the war." He turned back to her. "Then nothing would stand between us."

"Or he could kill you," she said.

"You don't believe I can defeat him?" he asked.

"You mean if you could find him?" she asked pointedly, raising her eyebrows at him. "Even if you knew where he was, I believe taking his life would not bring you peace," she told him. There was anger creeping into her voice now too. "And while you try in vain to remake the past our future could slip away." The silence between them was thick with tension.

"You sound like Obi-Wan." He didn't mean it as a compliment. "I will destroy Maul," he said. For a few seconds, they glared at each other, neither willing to back down, but then the fire in his eyes died down, almost as if he were coming out of a trance. "And when I do," he said, his tone soft, "everything will be different. I promise."

He started to reach out to her, but she stepped back, keeping her arms folded across her chest. She would not reassure him now, she would not condone his blood-thirst. He gave her a beseeching look, but when she continued to keep her distance he let his arms fall back to his sides.

"You'd better go," she said coolly, leaning past him to open the door. "I wouldn't want to keep you from your mission." From his expression she knew he did not like being dismissed like this, but at the moment she did not care. After a beat he stepped out into the corridor and she shut the door behind him, hitting the controls with far more force than was necessary.

She stood alone in her stateroom and took several deep breaths. She was unnerved by their encounter, but she consoled herself with the thought that Anakin had no idea where Darth Maul was. He would cool off in a day or two, and she would have time to gather her thoughts. Then she would tell him about the twins and he would forget this foolish obsession with Maul. Everything will be fine, she told herself. But the specter of doubt now cast a shadow over her that she could not quite shake.

When the royal yacht landed on Alderaan in the morning, Anakin carried out the duties assigned to him by Master Unduli and carefully avoided Padme. He didn't want another lecture about why he was wrong. It wasn't too hard to steer clear of her, as she was whisked off to various official functions once they arrived at the palace and he hardly saw her.

Anakin's mind swirled with the admonitions of Obi-Wan and Padme, but nothing they said could outweigh his desire for revenge. Even in his waking moments the Sith Lord's black and red face loomed before him, taunting him. Somehow, he knew that only he could finish off Maul, if only the Jedi would give him the chance.

Anakin did not think Maul would come to Alderaan. It seemed more likely to him that the Sith Lord would look for someplace safe to regroup. He did not know where that would be, but over the course of the day he formulated a plan for how to find out. As night descended, Barriss relieved him from his security shift and he retired to his room. A note on his console told him Padme had tried to visit him earlier, but he'd been away. Just as well, he thought, she'd only try to keep me here. It would be easier this way. He waited in his room for a few hours, watching his chrono until it grew late enough that he could reasonably assume most people were asleep.

The palace was quiet as Anakin slipped out of his room. A few people and security droids were in the hall, but no one questioned the presence of the young Jedi. He went to the lift and rode it down to the royal hangar. While security on the perimeter of the palace was bulked up, the hangar was deep in the interior of the palace and not considered a high priority target. There was only a single attendant and an astromech droid waiting for Anakin as he entered the cavernous space.

"Good evening, sir." The attendant bowed his head as Anakin approached his booth. "May I help you with something?"

"Your shift has ended," Anakin said, raising his hand. The attendant's eyes glazed over.

"My shift has ended," the man repeated back.

"Your services are no longer required. Go home," Anakin ordered. The attendant's blue-and-white astromech gave a low, warning whistle, but the attendant did not seem to hear.

"My services are no longer required." The attendant walked off, exiting the hangar through a side door. The droid began to beep excitedly and tried to follow its master, but the door closed before the droid reached it. Anakin made sure the attendant was gone, then hurried into the depths of the hangar, his eyes scanning it for a very specific ship. Finally, he spotted it, tucked away in a corner.

His mother's ship looked as world-weary as ever, but in the Outlander's misshapen form he felt the comfort of home. He reached beneath the gangway and his fingers quickly found a loose panel. He detached it and ducked beneath the ship for a moment, pulling two wires from the ship and sparking them against each other. With a gentle hiss, the gangway opened. The attendant's astromech rolled up to him and made several scolding sounds, but Anakin shooed the little droid away and hurried on board, sealing the ship behind him.

He'd given the Outlander over to Padme when he joined the Jedi, and he knew she didn't use it much, but mercifully she had installed an auto-copilot to make the ship more manageable for a single occupant. Anakin fired up the engines and, with the help of his Jedi security clearance codes, soon cleared the palace, leaving Aldera in his wake as he headed for orbit.

He set up the ship's autopilot to plot a path as though he were headed for the hyperspace lanes that would take him to Coruscant, and then turned down the cockpit lights. He needed to figure out where he was headed, and quickly, if he was to avoid detection. He crossed his legs in the captain's chair and closed his eyes, reaching out with Force.

At first he had trouble controlling his meditation. Padme occupied his thoughts, and he had trouble redirecting his mind. As he surrendered himself to the Force, it took him to her. He could see her, asleep in her room. He could sense her presence. And there was something else, something he hadn't noticed before that was somehow both strange and familiar at the same time. He didn't understand what that could be, but, curious though he was, he wrenched his mind back to the task at hand.

"Show me Maul." He said the words aloud, hoping to renew his focus, but his mind remained blank, except for a vague outline of Padme that still lingered. He needed more control, more power. He knew where he could find it. He pictured Maul once again, and this time let his anger, his fear, and his hatred rise up. He felt his body grow cold as he found the darkness, tapped into it, and felt its power flow through him.

"Show me Maul," he said again. It was an order this time, not a request. Immediately, the path stretched out before him, fuzzy at first but growing clearer. He saw the systems he would pass through and the hyperspace lanes he should take. The path took him beyond the galaxy he knew, into the Unknown Regions. At the end of the path he saw a small, shimmering blue planet.

He walked along its glittering surface, beads of glass crunching beneath his feet. He could see the open hangar ahead. And then he was inside, moving down a dark corridor. He stopped in front of a door. This was it. The door opened...but Maul wasn't there. It was a spare, cramped room furnished with only a bed, on which sat a dark haired teenage girl. She was looking down at the object cradled in her hands: a ancient vibroblade etched with mysterious symbols. She turned her face toward him. Anakin realized with a jolt that it was his mother, though not as he had known her.

"You don't belong here," she said sternly, rising from the bed and coming forward to stand in front of him.

"I came here for Maul," he explained.

"Do not seek him," she warned. "It will destroy you."

"I must find him," Anakin insisted. The young woman shook her head.

"Go home, Anakin," she said. Her image started to waver before him and disappear. He started to reach out to her, but behind him he heard the steady mechanical breathing that had haunted his dreams for years. He whirled around to see the source of the sound, but it was Maul who stood before him. There was the unmistakable snap-hiss of a lightsaber and Anakin futilely raised his arms over his head as Darth Maul brought his red blade down.

Anakin hit the floor of the cockpit with a thud and the vision disappeared. His body was wracked with cold, but there was also a lingering, intoxicating sensation of unchecked power. He scrambled to his feet and back into the captain's chair, breathing hard. He knew where Maul was. He brought up the navicomputer, instinctively setting the coordinates based on his vision as he changed the Outlander's course.

He reached for the lightspeed controls, but stopped short. For a moment, his mother's warning reverberated in the mind. It will destroy you. But another voice crept in, a voice that came from the darkness. Take your revenge. He pushed Sola's warning aside. He knew what he had to do. He activated the hyperdrive. The pinpricks of the stars outside burned into blue streaks as the Outlander jumped into hyperspace, headed for the Unknown Regions.

"Anakin!" Padme sat bolt upright in her bed, her heart pounding, her body shivering with chills. Just a dream, she told herself, trying to slow her breathing, it was only a dream. She pulled a blanket up around her shoulders, trying to warm her icy skin, but the air around her was warm; the cold seemed to come from within her.

She tried to make sense of what she'd seen. She'd never experienced such an intense dream, even though there was a haze around it, as though she was looking in on someone else's mind. She'd seen the map to Maul and the shimmering blue planet. She'd heard Sola Skywalker's warning. And then there was Maul, about to deal his death blow. She pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. Just a dream.

She lay back down and closed her eyes, determined to go back to sleep. She was worried about Anakin, that was all. He was avoiding her. She'd worried over him to Breha earlier that same day. It was only natural she should dream about it. Yet sleep eluded her. Despite her attempts to reassure herself, she couldn't shake the nagging feeling that what she'd seen was not, in fact, just a dream. And if it was something more…

She got up and pulled her robe on and went out into the hall. Security droids roamed the palace corridors, but they were programmed to recognize and ignore the occupants of the palace, so she passed them by without incident. She made her way to Anakin's room and activated his comm.

"Anakin?" she called softly, but there was no reply. Her feeling of unease increased. Deciding he might have turned off the comm, she knocked quietly. Again, nothing. On the chance he'd left it unlocked, she reached for the door controls. The door sprang open at her touch. Her worry only increased as she stepped inside and the lights came on. The room was empty. No one slumbered in the unmade bed. Anakin was gone.

Padme bolted from the room and headed for the lifts, her unease turning to full blown panic. She got in a lift and punched the button that would take her the hangar level, hammering it repeatedly as though that would make the lift move faster. She started toward the attendant's booth, then realized it was empty. Goosebumps ran across her skin. She hurried across the hangar, to the berth where the kept the Outlander, hoping against hope it would still be where she'd left it.

She ducked under another ship and emerged into the area where the Outlander should have been, but the berth was empty. The ship was gone, and she knew who had taken it. She sank to her knees. Her chest was so tight she could barely breathe. Anakin was gone. He'd taken the Outlander, and he'd gone after his enemy. Sola's warning about Maul rang in her ears. Do not seek him. It will destroy you. She buried her head in her hands and let the tears come.

She was startled from her grief by the mournful beeps of an astromech droid, now rolling toward her from beneath an adjacent starfighter. She looked up at the R2 unit as it attempted to communicate with her, but she didn't know how to translate its binary language. Still, she had the distinct impression the droid was trying to offer her its sympathy.

"Were you left behind too?" she asked. She took it's emphatic beep to be a response in the affirmative. "I don't know what I'm going to do," she told it. The droid whistled sadly and she patted its dome. "I wish you could help me." Then, as she looked fondly on the R2 unit, her eyes drifted to the sleek starfighter in the next berth, and an idea took hold in her mind.

"Maybe you can help me," she said quietly, staring at the ship. "If I remove your restraining bolt, can you get me into that ship?" she asked the droid, pointing to the fighter. The droid rotated its dome to see where she was pointing, then swiveled back to her a gave off a series of high pitched bleats.

"I'll take that as a yes," she said, pulling out a hair pin and quickly using it to pry off the droid's restraining bolt. As the droid scooted over to the fighter she stood and took a deep breathe. This is madness, the voice in her head said, don't do it. But she had to do it. Anakin was out there, alone, headed for danger, and she had seen exactly where he was going and how to get there. There was no time to get help. If she left now, she might reach him before he got to Maul. She could bring him home safe. She had to try.

Darth Maul savored the shiver that went through the room as he entered the security center. Vigdis and a small crew were manning the consoles, monitoring the skies around the facility for any signs of trouble. But Maul's senses were their first true line of defense, and he knew something was coming before their instruments picked it up. Before long though, one of the offers spoke up.

"A ship is approaching."

"Show me." Maul ordered. A freighter appeared on the vidscreen. Maul recognized it at once. He reached out with the Force and felt a familiar presence. "It's Skywalker."

"The Jedi?" Vigdis asked, alarmed as she recognized the name. "Ready the cannons."

"No," Maul said slowly, watching the Outlander approach, "he's here on his own account." Maul considered for a moment, then turned to one of the security crew. "There is a small, secondary hangar at the north end of the facility. Open it."

"But, sir!" Vigdis tried to intervene, but Maul held up a hand.

"Do it," Maul ordered. They all knew he would not ask again. The crewman nervously reached out and activated the controls for the secondary hangar.

"What if he's a scout?" Vigdis demanded. "What if he's led the Republic here?"

"Load the fighters onto the Selonia and refuel, then take the ship and half our forces to the far side of the planet," Maul told her, ignoring her questions.

"Have you lost your mind?" Vigdis hissed. "We can't divide our forces!"

"If the Republic attacks, we will draw them to the surface," Maul explained coolly. "They will not expect an attack from orbit. As far as they are aware, we have no starfighters."

"What does it matter, they will still outnumber us, ten to one!" Her tone was mutinous.

"The storms on the surface will cripple them," Maul said simply. He kept his temper in check. He needed Vigdis to keep their troops in line. He would not be denied his chance with Skywalker.

"It's still an awful risk," she said warily, but she seemed to be backing down. "And what about the Jedi?" Maul smiled grimly.

"Leave him to me."