Misread Prophecy

AUTHOR: Abigail

SUMMARY: What if the 'chosen one' wasn't Anakin Skywalker? What if the Jedi Council realized their mistake too late?

CHAPTER 8: Mesmerized

RATING: T

DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything that was created by George Lucas.

NOTE: I really liked writing this Chapter, sorry if it's a little short. The next one will be up within an hour after I post this one. It was hard writing the other chapters because they were so like the movie, and I apologize for that, but it was necessary for the rest of the story. Hope you like it. (I'm doing my best to get this finished for you 'Anakin-Padme').

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Let me speak quietly,
so your heart can hear.
I will hypnotize and mesmerize you
with the sound of your own fear.

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Padme marched her way up the lengthy stairs of the Jedi Temple, a small army of Clone Troopers behind her. Their footsteps reverberated against the stone walls once they reached the top of them. Padme felt secluded and protected under the hood of her cloak, able to hide from the monster she had become. But the fire within her continued to burn, and she pressed on, her eyes searching the long hallways and corridors for any lingering Jedi.

"You four, stand guard at the platform. We don't want anyone coming here..." she said to the Clone Troopers. They nodded and turned away. "The rest of you, search out the remaining Jedi and kill them," she said monotonously, following her own path that eventually led to a small room where the door was ajar. She peered inside to find Jedi Shaak Ti. With stealth and grace, she stepped inside the room without a sound. Just as the Jedi Master turned around, Padme struck them down with her saber.

Shaak Ti's body plummeted to the ground, only a sigh escaping his lips. She quickly left the room, following her senses to seek out the others. Every second or so, she could feel the tiny prickles in the force...it stung lightly at her heart, every time one of them was mercilessly killed by her orders...But the feeling was easily ignored by the strong pulsing of her vehemence.

After minutes of scouring the long hallways, Padme found herself standing in an empty practice theater, where a group of younglings lay huddled in the corner. Several of them recognized her, jumping up from their spots and running to her.

"Milady, there are too many of them. What are we going to do?" a blonde haired blue eyed boy asked. Padme's eyes lingered on him, as she scanned his face. He looked just like Anakin the day she met him on Tatooine. It was a lifetime ago. She was a different person then. Barely a woman and still Queen of the Naboo. What was she now?

"Miss Amidala..." another boy whined, his eyes brimming with tears. More of them began to gather around her, thankful for her comforting presence and authority. She slowly backed away from them, remembering what she had to do. She pulled out her saber, activating it. Its bright sheen lit up the room, enhancing the tiny, frightened faces of the little Padawans.

Padme closed her eyes and whispered... "I'm sorry..." as she brought her saber back, ready to obliterate the younglings who stood in her way. But they never heard her say 'I'm sorry', for Padme's light saber quickly fell to the ground. She clutched at her stomach as the pains came back, more violently and brutally then before. Spasms rippled throughout her entire body, sending her to the floor where she thudded against the cold tile. A groan came from her throat, as she writhed fiercely, her heels digging into the ground.

Several of the younglings began to scream and cry, while the blonde haired boy stood above Padme, a vexed look on his face. "Miss Amidala...what's wrong?" he cried. He quickly knelt down next to her, shaking her shoulder gently while Padme continued to moan and gasp. "What's wrong?" he said. But suddenly, the boy turned to the open door, as did the rest of the younglings.

"They're coming!" one of them screamed, as they scurried back to their protective corner of the room. The blonde boy remained next to Padme; as he listened to the footsteps of the Clone Troopers intensify with volume. He quickly ran to the door, gently shutting it as to not make a sound. His thin little frame rested against the door, his ear pressed against it, quietly listening...The footsteps suddenly stopped.

"She's already taken care of this hall...I see bodies down that way..." a Trooper said flatly, and the pounding started up again as the small battalion headed in the opposite direction, their footsteps soon dying away.

"They're going away!" cried a little girl. The little boy returned to Padme's side, whose painful sounds had not gone away. Sweat began to form along her forehead, and her face was flushed...tears gently wetting her cheeks. The boy finally noticed her swollen belly, and pointed to it.

"She's having a baby!" he whispered, amazed at how painful it seemed to be for this gentle woman that had always been so nice to him.

"What will we do?" another girl asked, as they began to creep towards Padme again. Their tiny hands gently rubbed her arms and stomach, trying their best to find ways to comfort her.

Padme struggled to focus, but her mind was blank and pointless thoughts ran through her head. The contractions in her stomach were excruciatingly painful...and she realized that the baby was coming. Her mind was full of fear, knowing in her mind that she hadn't gained her power yet, and that this baby would die, possibly herself as well. Short gasps escaped her mouth as she strained to speak...desperately searching for something to say...

"Help...find help..." she panted. The tiny Padawans knelt above her, their fragile head's nodding as the turned to one another, softly whispering and pulling at each other. Her hands clutched at her robes, her breathing becoming more labored and shallow...

"We'll go!" Two boys and a little girl ran to the door, opening the door and poking their small heads out. After looking both ways down the hall, they ran out of the room, their tiny feet leaving little sounds on the tile floor. Padme screamed out again, the throbbing pain continuing to attack her body. A few of the children ran back to the corner, frightened by the woman's pain. Some of them even began to cry.

Then, the smell of smoke entered the room, tingling their tiny noses. "Fire!" they howled, clutching at each other again. But the blonde haired boy remained next to Padme, holding her hand and silently staring into her large brown eyes. Gradually, the pain left Padme's body as she stared back at the little boy. She was captivated by his blue eyes...so similar to Anakin's. The theater was slowly filling up with thick smoke, causing the other child to scream, most of them rushing out of the room. The boy remained. She smiled warmly at him, as the room around her disappeared into darkness, only the boy's face remaining. Then, it too began to dissolve away, leaving her numb and alone in a world of black...

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Far away, on the planet of Kashyyyk, Yoda hobbled along a narrow corridor, his eyes looking at the window, watching the battlefield below. Most of the Wookies were able to overpower the multitudes of Clone Ships, sending the Clones to their death in an explosion of fire. The battle appeared to be over, the Wookies stacking many of the dilapidated droids, while others shot the ones that still scampered about the battleground.

Suddenly, Yoda clutched at his chest, the grip on his gimmer stick tightening violently. A disturbance in the force rippled throughout his body, causing him to rest against the wall. His breath came in short pants, as the disturbance intensified...until is slowly died away. Yoda carefully shut his eyes, trying to look past the cloud of the dark side. But he saw nothing...He continued to walk on, not knowing that the evil Sith Lord Darth Siddious had just issued that order 66 be carried out...and order that meant death to the Jedi all over the galaxy...