THE ADMIRAL

Chapter I

"Obi-wan?"

The Jedi Master leaned over her while still cradling her baby.

"There's good in him. I know there's…still…"

Obi-wan watched as her breath faded away and her eyes closed. A wave of sorrow and grief washed over him at the loss of his friend. May the force be with you, Padme.

Alarms began blaring throughout the station.

Obi-wan looked around confused. What in the blazes is going on?

Suddenly, Bail Organa ran into the room with a frantic look on his face. "It's the Empire. They've found us."

"How is that possible?"

"I don't know, but we must leave immediately!"

Obi-wan glanced back at the operating table, "What about Padme? We can't leave her here!"

Bail grimaced, "We don't have a choice. We have to go now!"

Every fiber in his body told him that staying was a bad idea, but there was a part of him that wanted to stay and fight, to make sure they could all leave together. He almost did, but the baby girl in his arms let out a small cry and he was reminded of his priorities. "Right. Let's go!"

Senator Organa held out his hands, "Give me the child. We must hurry. Master Yoda and the boy are already on the ship."

. . .

"Commander! There's a ship attempting to flee the station!"

"Alert the Admiral."

"Yes, sir!" The clone stepped away and began talking into his commlink.

Commander Thire continued down the hallway to the station's main control room. Upon entering the control room, he found Sergeant Jek and his team questioning the station's administrator. "Sergeant!"

The Sergeant saluted him.

Thire returned his salute, "Report. What's our situation here?"

"Station's secure, sir! No casualties. One ship managed to escape before we could lock down the station. The station's logs say it was a Corellian model CR90 corvette. Everything else pertaining to the ship has been erased."

"Have our technicians try to recover the data."

"Yes, sir!"

Just then his commlink beeped.

"Commander Thire. Come in. This is Rys."

Thire keyed his commlink, "What is it, Lieutenant?"

"Sir, there's something you need to see in the medical bay."

"Stand by. I'm on my way." It took Thire a few minutes to make his way through the station.

When he entered the medical bay, he was immediately greeted by Lieutenant Rys. "Sir, you're not gonna believe this."

"What is it, Rys?"

"Everyone out," Rys ordered. All the troopers that were in the room filed out into the hallway until it was just the two of them.

Thire watched the troopers leave, then turned to Lieutenant Rys, "What was that all about?"

Rys motioned towards the viewport. There were several droids gathered around an operating table. "My troopers came in and found the droids operating on somebody. They checked the terminal and there was no information in the system about who they were operating on or why. They didn't know what to do so they contacted me. I entered the operating room to see who it was," Rys grabbed his arm, "It's Senator Amidala."

Thire's eyes widened underneath his helmet. "Are you sure?"

"I'm positive, sir. I was with Commander Fox when we rescued her from Ziro the Hutt."

Thire stared at the operating table in disbelief. "I'd better inform Admiral Grouse. Stand guard. Let me know as soon as they finish the procedure. I want to speak to the medical droid about her condition. As soon as she's stable, we'll transfer her to the medical facilities aboard the cruiser."

Rys nodded, "Will do."

. . .

"Really?"

"Yes, my lord. From what I understand, she had some complications during childbirth. My chief medical officer assures me that she is in stable condition now."

Emperor Palpatine smiled, "Hmmm…how interesting. Tell me, Admiral, how many children did she give birth to?"

"Two, your excellency."

Once again, the emperor smiled, only this one looked much more sinister. "Wonderful! What of the Jedi?"

"They escaped before our troops landed, my lord. I attempted to intercept their ship, but they jumped to hyperspace before we could get a lock with the tractor beam."

"Disappointing… no matter. There are only so many places they can hide. Were you able to recover the children?"

Admiral Grouse nervously cleared his throat. "No, your excellency. The Jedi must've taken them aboard their ship. I've sent out a sector wide alert along their last known trajectory."

The Emperor leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin, "I see…most unfortunate. At least you managed to recover the Senator. That achievement alone deserves commendation."

Grouse bowed his head, "Thank you, my lord."

"Bring her to me at once."

Grouse snapped to attention, "It will be done, my lord."

. . .

Padme woke up to the sound of multiple footsteps, all in unison. She opened her eyes and realized that she was on a gurney being pushed into a gunship. There were two officers and a few clone troopers in the gunship with her. She looked at the officers and recognized the older gentleman was wearing the placard of an Admiral. She tried to speak, but realized that she was wearing an oxygen mask so whatever she tried to say came out very muffled. The noise was enough to get their attention.

The Admiral looked down at her and motioned to one of the troopers, "Take off her oxygen mask."

The trooper gently removed the straps from behind her head and lifted the mask away from her face. "Ma'am, are you alright?"

Padme responded, "I'm a little dizzy."

The trooper checked something on a datapad, "It's the medication you were given, ma'am. Your vitals are normal. Any nausea or sensitivity to light?"

"No." She looked at the Admiral, "Excuse me, sir? Where are you taking me?"

The Admiral stepped closer to her stretcher, "The Imperial Palace. The Emperor wishes to see you."

"Why?"

The Admiral shook his head, "No idea, Senator. You can ask him yourself when we get there." He turned and signaled to the pilot that they were ready for takeoff.

The gunship's doors closed and they took off. The flight was a short one and the landing was smooth enough, but when the doors opened her eyes widened when she realized where they were. "This is the Jedi Temple!"

The Admiral looked down at her with a look of sorrow on his face, "Not anymore…"

The detail wheeled her through the temple and she could see blaster marks all over the walls. Statues were toppled onto the floor and there was debris everywhere. There were cleaning crews removing the debris and hanging imperial banners everywhere. A tear slid down her face when she realized what her husband had done here. Obi-wan was right…

She was led into an antechamber where, behind a desk in the back, sat "Emperor" Palpatine. There was very little light in the room except for the glow from a computer terminal on Palpatine's desk and a few lamps along the walls.

The Admiral stepped forward and snapped to attention, "My lord, may I present, Senator Padme Amidala."

Palpatine stood, "Thank you, Admiral. Leave us."

The Admiral bowed, then responded, "Yes, my lord," before turning and leaving the chamber, taking the detail of troopers with him. Two guards wearing red armor closed the doors behind them.

Palpatine moved around his desk and began slowly walking towards her. "Hello, my dear. I'm so relieved that you're alright."

Ignoring the pain in her midsection, Padme rolled onto her side and lifted herself into a sitting position. She took a second to compose herself before she spoke, "Thank you."

Palpatine continued walking towards her as he spoke, "I was so worried when I found out you had been taken by the Jedi."

She knew he was testing her, but she didn't care. "I'd be dead if it weren't for them."

"Is that so?" Palpatine laughed, "I would've thought you would hold contempt for the Jedi after they stole your children from you."

Padme's heart skipped a beat. How does he know that?

"The medical droid told us everything."

Did he just read my mind? Palpatine stopped right beside her stretcher and she could finally make out his face. She had to look away. She hadn't been able to see up close in the senate chamber exactly how badly he'd been deformed, but she wasn't expecting it to be that bad. He was so pale! He looked like a ghost.

"Not a pretty sight, I imagine. If the Jedi could do this to me, imagine what they will do with your children."

Padme fought the nauseous feeling in her stomach and looked him in the eye, "My children are safer with the Jedi than they would be with you. You've become a tyrant! Declaring yourself Emperor, eliminating the Jedi, and stifling liberty in the name of security! This "empire" you've created isn't to provide peace…you did it to gain power!"

"SILENCE! Insolent child. You know nothing. My Empire will bring peace and prosperity to the galaxy."

Padme scoffed, "As long as you trample the rights of the people, there will never be peace. They won't stand for it."

"The people want the security that my empire provides. Anybody who interferes with that will be dealt with most severely."

He's lost it. "The security of the empire? Don't you mean, anybody who threatens your seat of power?"

Palpatine didn't say anything, he just smiled.

Padme shook her head in disgust, "Why am I here?"

"I have a proposition for you. Work for me…"

Padme screamed, "I'll never work for you!"

"My dear…let me finish. Tell me where the Jedi are hiding your children, swear allegiance to the empire, and, most importantly, to me."

"Why would I do that?"

"If you don't…then I'll imprison you for the rest of your life."

"I can handle that."

"I have no doubt, my dear…but if you won't serve me, then perhaps your children will?"

A cold chill shot down her spine, "You'll never find them."

"That's where you're wrong, my dear. There are only so many places Master Yoda and Kenobi can hide. My enforcers will hunt them down like dogs. Of course, I might be compelled to spare their lives and allow you to have contact with your children. All you would have to do is cooperate and tell me where they are hiding."

Even though she kept a straight face, her eyes deceived her and a single tear slid down her face. "I don't know where they are…and even if I did, I wouldn't tell you."

Palpatine seemed amused by her answer. "Such defiance. I wonder how long you can keep that up after you've spent some time with my interrogators. Guards!"

Padme watched as the two guards that were by the door walked up beside her stretcher. He's bluffing! She turned to Palpatine, "You can't do this! I'm still a Senator!"

"You WERE a Senator, my dear. That was until you were caught conspiring with known traitors of the Empire. Take her away!"

. . .

Hey, everyone. I had the idea for this story stuck in my head and I felt like it needed to be shared with the world. I hope you like it! Follow, Favorite, and Leave a Comment if you liked the story. I love reading your guy's comments. They're a major source of inspiration for me and may or may not decrease the time it takes for me to get another chapter out. Until next time…