Well, it turns out I was very lucky getting those last two chapters posted
when I did. I just barely managed to squeeze them in before the site went
whacko again. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed them and are enjoying the
direction this fic is taking. When I first started this I really had no
idea where I was going to take it, so it's been fun playing around with it.
I will have the next post up in a few days, barring any more
complications. Please don't forget to review. I've really missed the
feedback with all these problems. (
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Anakin approached the mural that Chancellor Palpatine had disappeared through. He smoothed his hand over the waterfall. He was looking for a seam, a secret button, or anything out of place.
"This is soooo cool," he spoke out loud excitedly.
Finding nothing, he turned his back to the wall, as he had seen the chancellor do. He pressed his body into the wall. Nothing.
~Bummer~ he thought.
He turned and looked at the mural once more before turning and heading back to his master. Qui-Gon would know what to do.
He hesitated slightly. Qui-Gon had sent him to bed over an hour ago. How was he going to explain that he had been wandering the corridors, and that he just happened to see Chancellor Palpatine slipping through a secret passageway inside a painted waterfall?
He had sensed Palpatine approaching, and was surprised when the force urged him to conceal himself. He had felt the chancellor access the force to scan his surroundings. It had taken a tremendous amount of shielding on Anakin's part to remain undetected.
The whole thing was just odd. He'd had no idea the chancellor was even force sensitive. Something was wrong here, he just didn't know what. Trusting his instincts, as Qui-Gon had taught him, he quickened his pace once again. He would tell his master.
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Sideous approached the still unconscious Jedi. He noted with approval that his assistant (he refused to call anyone else other than the one that lie before him, his apprentice), Kemar had prepared the knight to his specifications. It would soon be time to begin.
The knight lie before him on a cold metal table, his arms bound slightly above his head. All clothing had been removed, including boots, save for the lightweight black leggings that did little to keep the chill of the damp air at bay.
The young mans sleep was far from peaceful. Sideous watched as the boy's head slowly tossed from side to side. A fine sheen of perspiration glistened on the golden skin and dampened the ginger hair, darkening it at the edges. The lithe body moved weakly, yet restlessly, straining against the bonds at wrist and ankles.
Sideous moved to the smaller table set just to the side of the young knight. A various array of implements covered its small surface. Implements that looked innocuous enough in themselves, but oh the pain they could cause when held in the right hands.
Sideous almost allowed himself a small sigh. From what he knew of the young knight, he knew that it would take a lot more than torture to break this one. Yes, he would have to go a different route, at least to start with.
He reached out almost reverently to adjust each implement. Physical torture could still be beneficial, once other barriers were removed.
The young knight had caught the Sith lords eye years before. How could he not, the boy was a beacon of light and innocence. Sideous found those traits in combination with the raw untapped power he could sense simmering just beneath the surface, completely intoxicating. He had wondered then if the boy's master had any idea of the power the boy was capable of wielding.
He had tried on three different occasions to obtain the youth, each attempt a different method and each on a different planet. Sideous grimaced as he thought of the person who had prevented his plans from coming to fruition on each of those occasions.
Qui-Gon Jinn.
His grimace slowly turned into a leer as he once again turned to the young knight that was finally within his grasp. Sideous found it enormously amusing that the boys mentor and protector would now be used as the catalyst to turn this beautiful child of light towards the welcoming embrace of darkness.
In his impartial 'observations' of young Kenobi's memories, he found very few weaknesses that he could exploit. The young man was an exceptional swordsman, was no slouch in hand to hand combat, and was beyond competent when it came to mediating or negotiating any type of diplomatic situation.
He knew if he were to find a way to get to Kenobi, it would have to be on a more personal level. It didn't take the dark lord long to discover the rift that had formed between Jinn and his former apprentice.
When he delved further into that precarious relationship, he knew he had found the one weakness that he could ruthlessly exploit. As competent as the young man before him was, he was also extremely insecure. Not in his abilities, yet he did tend to underestimate himself there as well. The young knight actually considered himself unworthy of his place within the order.
It was easy for Sideous to trace the origins of the young mans insecurities all the way back to Jinn's first rejection of him at age 13.
Then he had 'witnessed' Jinn's latest rejection, in front of the council no less....in favor of the proclaimed Chosen One. He should really thank Jinn, he thought. He had not had to destroy the boy at all. Jinn had done it for him.
The boy had been knighted and thrown into the field while his head was still spinning and his heart wide open. Sideous had really had to exercise his self control at that time, he had wanted to acquire the boy then, when the young knight would have been at his lowest point. Yet, his new responsibilities as Chancellor just would not allow it.
The young man before him moaned softly still caught in the grip of drug and force induced memories. For hours now Sideous had been reinforcing and sometimes embellishing any and every insecure thought the young man had. It came as no surprise to the sith that most of those insecurities centered around Jinn.
~Jinn, that stupid arrogant fool~ a look of disgust and contempt colored the siths features as he thought of the Jedi Master. ~the idiot never knew what already lie within his grasp.~
Slowly, he began to release his hold on the young knights consciousness. He would need the young man awake for the next stage of his plans.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Amidala smiled as she recalled the evening she and Obi-Wan had spent in the palace kitchen after she had found him in the garden.. It was the first of many long talks into the early morning hours that they would have in the months to come.
She looked over at Qui-Gon and noticed that he seemed to be hanging on her every word. "He didn't open up to me that night. But we talked, a lot. We had numerous cups of tea, and I learned more about the jedi order than I ever wanted to know." She smiled again at the memory. "I think I helped him that night. He should not have been alone."
"No, you're right. He shouldn't have been alone" Qui-Gon spoke quietly, knowing he couldn't have been there, but wishing he had been. "I am thankful that you were there for him."
"We talked until dawn." Her voice and her gaze grew distant, remembering the time in which she spoke. "I remember not wanting the night to end. Eventually the kitchen staff came in and shooed us out."
Qui-Gon remained silent not wanting to disturb her reverie. After a moment she continued. "He told me he was to leave later that morning, on his first mission. I extended an open invitation for him to return, but somehow I sensed that he had no intention of returning."
"Yet, he did return" Qui-Gon prompted. He wanted to know more. He also felt the queens need to talk. It seemed to be keeping her worry at bay, for now.
"Yes, though he told me later that if he'd had his way that he probably would not have returned." she smiled as she remembered his smiling face when he told her of why he had come back. "He said the force had made him do it."
Qui-Gon smiled. He did not doubt that it was the force that had led his Obi- Wan back to this planet and to this young queen. As always, the force was looking out for Obi-Wan. With that thought, he could only hope that that held true now more than ever.
As if sensing his thoughts, Amidala turned her attention to him. He felt her worry increase again, the reality of the situation no longer softened by memories.
"How?" Some of the ice had returned to her voice as she regarded him. "How could you do that to him?"
For his part, he did not pretend to misunderstand. He had no answer, no defense.
"I can understand that you had quite an extensive recovery period Master Jinn. But I watched him as the weeks stretched into months and still you did not contact him. I saw what that did to him. Do you know how many times I found him, on his knees, in that melting pit?"
Qui-Gon thought that his heart couldn't possibly constrict any further. He sat in silence, just trying to comprehend how he had let things go so far. Yet, a part of him couldn't help but think that he was not the only one who could have tried to put things right.
"Did he never consider contacting me?" he asked.
"As a matter of fact.....No. He did not." Amidala kept her voice calm and cool as she spoke. Inside she was seething. ~The nerve of this man. He makes the mess and he expects Obi to clean it up for him!~
When she spoke again her voice betrayed nothing of her inner rage at the man.
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As Anakin approached the sitting room he could hear the muffled tone of his queens voice. He paused just outside the door, not wanting to interrupt.
"He told me that he had made an attempt to set things right, to show you that he was willing to try to fix things between you. When he did not hear from you, he assumed that you preferred things the way they were"
"I don't understand" Anakin could hear the confusion in his master's voice. "What attempt?"
Anakin cringed slightly as his thoughts were drawn back to that day in the palace infirmary. He knew what they were talking about. Obi-Wan and that damned braid. He moaned silently, all thoughts of Palpatine now gone. ~I should have known that was going to come back to haunt me.~
"Master?" Anakin stepped into the room, halting the conversation.
"Anakin, what are you still doing up?" asked Qui-Gon.
"I couldn't sleep. I decided to take a walk." which was true, except for the fact that he hadn't really tried to go to sleep. "I'm sorry if I interrupted anything."
"You didn't," the queen spoke as she turned to Qui-Gon. "I believe I've made myself quite clear. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm afraid I lost track of the hour."
"Of course your highness," said Qui-Gon, ever the diplomat. Though his heart and mind were racing as he pondered the evening's discussion, he offered, "Shall we walk you to your suite?"
Amidala paused and looked at him for a moment, as if the request had surprised her. Recovering quickly, she responded, "If you wish."
"We wish" Anakin answered quickly with a smile as he moved to her side and offered his arm.
Qui-Gon smiled at the two as he followed them into the corridor and towards the Queens suite.
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Anakin approached the mural that Chancellor Palpatine had disappeared through. He smoothed his hand over the waterfall. He was looking for a seam, a secret button, or anything out of place.
"This is soooo cool," he spoke out loud excitedly.
Finding nothing, he turned his back to the wall, as he had seen the chancellor do. He pressed his body into the wall. Nothing.
~Bummer~ he thought.
He turned and looked at the mural once more before turning and heading back to his master. Qui-Gon would know what to do.
He hesitated slightly. Qui-Gon had sent him to bed over an hour ago. How was he going to explain that he had been wandering the corridors, and that he just happened to see Chancellor Palpatine slipping through a secret passageway inside a painted waterfall?
He had sensed Palpatine approaching, and was surprised when the force urged him to conceal himself. He had felt the chancellor access the force to scan his surroundings. It had taken a tremendous amount of shielding on Anakin's part to remain undetected.
The whole thing was just odd. He'd had no idea the chancellor was even force sensitive. Something was wrong here, he just didn't know what. Trusting his instincts, as Qui-Gon had taught him, he quickened his pace once again. He would tell his master.
````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Sideous approached the still unconscious Jedi. He noted with approval that his assistant (he refused to call anyone else other than the one that lie before him, his apprentice), Kemar had prepared the knight to his specifications. It would soon be time to begin.
The knight lie before him on a cold metal table, his arms bound slightly above his head. All clothing had been removed, including boots, save for the lightweight black leggings that did little to keep the chill of the damp air at bay.
The young mans sleep was far from peaceful. Sideous watched as the boy's head slowly tossed from side to side. A fine sheen of perspiration glistened on the golden skin and dampened the ginger hair, darkening it at the edges. The lithe body moved weakly, yet restlessly, straining against the bonds at wrist and ankles.
Sideous moved to the smaller table set just to the side of the young knight. A various array of implements covered its small surface. Implements that looked innocuous enough in themselves, but oh the pain they could cause when held in the right hands.
Sideous almost allowed himself a small sigh. From what he knew of the young knight, he knew that it would take a lot more than torture to break this one. Yes, he would have to go a different route, at least to start with.
He reached out almost reverently to adjust each implement. Physical torture could still be beneficial, once other barriers were removed.
The young knight had caught the Sith lords eye years before. How could he not, the boy was a beacon of light and innocence. Sideous found those traits in combination with the raw untapped power he could sense simmering just beneath the surface, completely intoxicating. He had wondered then if the boy's master had any idea of the power the boy was capable of wielding.
He had tried on three different occasions to obtain the youth, each attempt a different method and each on a different planet. Sideous grimaced as he thought of the person who had prevented his plans from coming to fruition on each of those occasions.
Qui-Gon Jinn.
His grimace slowly turned into a leer as he once again turned to the young knight that was finally within his grasp. Sideous found it enormously amusing that the boys mentor and protector would now be used as the catalyst to turn this beautiful child of light towards the welcoming embrace of darkness.
In his impartial 'observations' of young Kenobi's memories, he found very few weaknesses that he could exploit. The young man was an exceptional swordsman, was no slouch in hand to hand combat, and was beyond competent when it came to mediating or negotiating any type of diplomatic situation.
He knew if he were to find a way to get to Kenobi, it would have to be on a more personal level. It didn't take the dark lord long to discover the rift that had formed between Jinn and his former apprentice.
When he delved further into that precarious relationship, he knew he had found the one weakness that he could ruthlessly exploit. As competent as the young man before him was, he was also extremely insecure. Not in his abilities, yet he did tend to underestimate himself there as well. The young knight actually considered himself unworthy of his place within the order.
It was easy for Sideous to trace the origins of the young mans insecurities all the way back to Jinn's first rejection of him at age 13.
Then he had 'witnessed' Jinn's latest rejection, in front of the council no less....in favor of the proclaimed Chosen One. He should really thank Jinn, he thought. He had not had to destroy the boy at all. Jinn had done it for him.
The boy had been knighted and thrown into the field while his head was still spinning and his heart wide open. Sideous had really had to exercise his self control at that time, he had wanted to acquire the boy then, when the young knight would have been at his lowest point. Yet, his new responsibilities as Chancellor just would not allow it.
The young man before him moaned softly still caught in the grip of drug and force induced memories. For hours now Sideous had been reinforcing and sometimes embellishing any and every insecure thought the young man had. It came as no surprise to the sith that most of those insecurities centered around Jinn.
~Jinn, that stupid arrogant fool~ a look of disgust and contempt colored the siths features as he thought of the Jedi Master. ~the idiot never knew what already lie within his grasp.~
Slowly, he began to release his hold on the young knights consciousness. He would need the young man awake for the next stage of his plans.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Amidala smiled as she recalled the evening she and Obi-Wan had spent in the palace kitchen after she had found him in the garden.. It was the first of many long talks into the early morning hours that they would have in the months to come.
She looked over at Qui-Gon and noticed that he seemed to be hanging on her every word. "He didn't open up to me that night. But we talked, a lot. We had numerous cups of tea, and I learned more about the jedi order than I ever wanted to know." She smiled again at the memory. "I think I helped him that night. He should not have been alone."
"No, you're right. He shouldn't have been alone" Qui-Gon spoke quietly, knowing he couldn't have been there, but wishing he had been. "I am thankful that you were there for him."
"We talked until dawn." Her voice and her gaze grew distant, remembering the time in which she spoke. "I remember not wanting the night to end. Eventually the kitchen staff came in and shooed us out."
Qui-Gon remained silent not wanting to disturb her reverie. After a moment she continued. "He told me he was to leave later that morning, on his first mission. I extended an open invitation for him to return, but somehow I sensed that he had no intention of returning."
"Yet, he did return" Qui-Gon prompted. He wanted to know more. He also felt the queens need to talk. It seemed to be keeping her worry at bay, for now.
"Yes, though he told me later that if he'd had his way that he probably would not have returned." she smiled as she remembered his smiling face when he told her of why he had come back. "He said the force had made him do it."
Qui-Gon smiled. He did not doubt that it was the force that had led his Obi- Wan back to this planet and to this young queen. As always, the force was looking out for Obi-Wan. With that thought, he could only hope that that held true now more than ever.
As if sensing his thoughts, Amidala turned her attention to him. He felt her worry increase again, the reality of the situation no longer softened by memories.
"How?" Some of the ice had returned to her voice as she regarded him. "How could you do that to him?"
For his part, he did not pretend to misunderstand. He had no answer, no defense.
"I can understand that you had quite an extensive recovery period Master Jinn. But I watched him as the weeks stretched into months and still you did not contact him. I saw what that did to him. Do you know how many times I found him, on his knees, in that melting pit?"
Qui-Gon thought that his heart couldn't possibly constrict any further. He sat in silence, just trying to comprehend how he had let things go so far. Yet, a part of him couldn't help but think that he was not the only one who could have tried to put things right.
"Did he never consider contacting me?" he asked.
"As a matter of fact.....No. He did not." Amidala kept her voice calm and cool as she spoke. Inside she was seething. ~The nerve of this man. He makes the mess and he expects Obi to clean it up for him!~
When she spoke again her voice betrayed nothing of her inner rage at the man.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As Anakin approached the sitting room he could hear the muffled tone of his queens voice. He paused just outside the door, not wanting to interrupt.
"He told me that he had made an attempt to set things right, to show you that he was willing to try to fix things between you. When he did not hear from you, he assumed that you preferred things the way they were"
"I don't understand" Anakin could hear the confusion in his master's voice. "What attempt?"
Anakin cringed slightly as his thoughts were drawn back to that day in the palace infirmary. He knew what they were talking about. Obi-Wan and that damned braid. He moaned silently, all thoughts of Palpatine now gone. ~I should have known that was going to come back to haunt me.~
"Master?" Anakin stepped into the room, halting the conversation.
"Anakin, what are you still doing up?" asked Qui-Gon.
"I couldn't sleep. I decided to take a walk." which was true, except for the fact that he hadn't really tried to go to sleep. "I'm sorry if I interrupted anything."
"You didn't," the queen spoke as she turned to Qui-Gon. "I believe I've made myself quite clear. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm afraid I lost track of the hour."
"Of course your highness," said Qui-Gon, ever the diplomat. Though his heart and mind were racing as he pondered the evening's discussion, he offered, "Shall we walk you to your suite?"
Amidala paused and looked at him for a moment, as if the request had surprised her. Recovering quickly, she responded, "If you wish."
"We wish" Anakin answered quickly with a smile as he moved to her side and offered his arm.
Qui-Gon smiled at the two as he followed them into the corridor and towards the Queens suite.